GRACE BACK IN FINAL GRACE BRETHREN 47, MOJAVE 13.

Byline: Dave Shelburne Staff Writer

MOORPARK - Chad Kackert wasn't perfect Friday night, but he was close enough, rushing for five touchdowns and 272 yards to lead host Grace Brethren of Simi Valley past Mojave 47-13 in a Div. XII semifinal at Moorpark High School.

``I think he might be the best I've seen in my 13 years,'' Mojave coach Larry Satterfield said after the Grace Brethren 5-foot-8, 177-pound senior scored on runs of 60, 1, 21, 40 and 30 yards to carry the Lancers to their third section title game in four years.

``Kackert is probably as good as I've seen in coaching. You stop him, you stop him, you stop him and all of a sudden he breaks loose. He's a great back and also the offensive and defensive lines played well.''

The victory advances Grace Brethren (12-1) to next week's Div. XII final, following a Div. XIII championship appearance in 2002 against Pasadena Poly and a 2001 appearance in the eight-man Large Division final against Faith Baptist - both resulting in losses for the Lancers.

They might have a better chance this time, not only because of the way Kackert is playing - his 129 career touchdowns are six shy of the Southern Section record - but for the way the rest of the Grace Brethren team is performing.

Against a strong Mojave team, which finished 11-2 and reached the section semifinals for only the third time in school history, Grace Brethren looked as strong on defense as it did in running up almost 50 points on offense.

``Both their offensive and defensive lines played well for them,'' Satterfield said. ``They blocked well and were able to shut down our inside running game, and the only other team able to do that was Oak Park.''

In winning, Grace Brethren absorbed a 105-yard rushing effort from Mojave two-way standout Chris Stevens and some big plays from defensive back/receiver Daniel Ashcraft, who scored the Mustangs' only touchdown on a 76-yard first-quarter pass from Steven Moe.

Kackert, however, proved too much for Mojave, not just with his running and scoring, but also with his defense. He nearly made his ninth interception of the season and wound up with a deflection to deny Mojave a touchdown at the end of the first half, when Grace Brethren was leading 26-13, and later forced a fumble, which led to his final touchdown.

``That kid is amazing,'' said Grace Brethren teammate Travis Chupp, who had two interceptions. ``You just give him the ball and let him go.''

Mojave started strong, taking an early 3-0 lead on J.P. Brandvig's first of two field goals (32, 39 yards), but Kackert responded almost immediately with a 60-yard touchdown run. When Mojave came right back on Ashcraft's 76-yard scoring reception, Kackert countered with touchdown runs of 1 and 21 yards and then Chupp made it a 26-10 game with a juggling 46-yard touchdown reception from Ricky Elmore.

Dave Shelburne, [phone]

dave.shelburne(at)dailynews.com