HART CLEARS THE FIRST HURDLE.

Byline: GERRY GITTELSON Community Sports

NEWHALL - A tumultuous week for Hart High's football team almost ended in disaster Friday, but the Indians pulled out a last-minute 32-27 victory over Glendora in the first round of the Southern Section Div. II playoffs at College of the Canyons.

Undoubtedly distracted - and shorthanded - following the recent disciplinary suspensions of standout kicker Paul Weinstein and starting offensive linemen J.T. Hartmire and Brandon Takata, Hart nearly was eliminated in the first round for the first time in coach Mike Herrington's 17-year tenure.

Down by one point, quarterback Tyler Lyon saved the day by driving Hart 80 yards - including a fourth-and-8 completion to James Wheeler to keep the drive (and season) alive - and scoring on a 6-yard touchdown run with 27 seconds remaining, sending the Indians to a quarterfinal matchup against Los Osos of Rancho Cucamonga (9-2) Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Canyons.

``It was a little nerveracking, but after everything we went through, it all seemed to work out,'' Lyon said. ``We had to switch some guys around and find some chemistry. Losing in the first round of the playoffs? There's no way we wanted to go out like that. That would have been greatly disappointing.''

Hart appeared in six section championships (winning five) from 1998 to 2003, then fell in the quarterfinals last season.

The suspensions, stemming from an alleged sexual-hazing incident in Hart's locker room, came on the heels of a disappointing 16-14 loss to Canyon in the Nov. 10 season finale, in which a lost fumble on Canyon's 5-yard line in the final seconds cost Hart the league title.

Amid recurring speculation of lawsuits and expulsions, Herrington has done his best to hold the pieces together as Hart has been harshly berated on Internet message boards.

``The kids had to buckle down,'' Herrington said. ``It's still hard to say (what the effect of the distractions will be). I'm not sure. But we had a good film session (on Saturday), and things seem to be going well.''

--Valencia and Canyon also have advanced to the Div. II quarterfinals, giving the Foothill League three of eight spots.

No team is hotter than second-seeded Canyon (10-1), which defeated Damien of La Verne 49-21 Friday, its eighth successive victory, seven of them by 20 or more points.

``Things are going good. The team is coming together great,'' quarterback Austin Civita said. ``It's just fun to go out and play football. We're having a good time. There's a lot of good teams left, so it's hard to say what's going to happen. We're just going to go out and keep playing.''

Canyon is favored at San Clemente (7-4) Friday, although the Tritons are a scary opponent - they lost just 7-6 to Mission Viejo (No. 2 in USA Today) in the regular-season finale, a game decided on a failed two-point conversion in the final moments. And San Clemente has eliminated Foothill League teams from the playoffs three years in a row - defeating Valencia in 2002 and 2003 and Saugus last season.

Valencia (8-3) knocked off host Trabuco Hills of Mission Viejo 61-42, setting up a quarterfinal matchup at home Friday against Chino Hills (11-0). California's all-time leading passer, Michael Herrick, who threw for 364 yards and a touchdown, improved his career yardage total to 10,366. He moved up to 19th on the national list.

Herrick returned Monday from Mississippi, where he took an official recruiting visit after verbally committing to Ole Miss during the summer.

``He had a great time,'' his father, Greg, said. ``After two days in Mississippi, Michael said he already started talking like them.''

--Former Hart girls' basketball standout Ashlee Trebilcock, a UCLA freshman, returns to Hart's gymnasium Wednesday at 7 p.m., when her No. 00 jersey will be retired in a ceremony prior to the tipoff of the boys' alumni game.

Trebilcock is Hart's first basketball player, boy or girl, whose number is retired. The 5-foot-9 guard was a four-time first-team All-Southern Section selection and a two-time section Player of the Year.

The post-Trebilcock era begins today at 5 p.m. at Hart, with the Indians facing Buena of Ventura and Newbury Park in an opening three-way scrimmage. Taylor Lilley, a senior who has signed with Oregon, takes over for Trebilcock at point guard. Hart's other starters are junior Kalana Inemer, sophomore Megan Ford, Alemany of Mission Hills transfer Tatianna Thomas and Britney Fitchpatrick. Kelli Lewis, recovering from summer knee surgery, also is expected to make an impact.

Hart (22-6 in 2004-2005) has won 61 games the past two seasons.