Point Loma High School’s (PLHS) CIF quarterfinal football victory over El Capitan High on Nov. 23 was anything but a walk in the park for more than three quarters. The Pointer home game, played in historic Balboa Stadium on the perimeter of Balboa Park, was up for grabs in the fourth quarter’s first minute, with the locals holding a slim 24-21 margin over the upstart Vaqueros. But the fourth-seeded Dogs, using their size and speed, eventually tired their East County foes, scoring 21 points in a decisive fourth quarter to advance to the semifinal round with a 45-21 victory that ended the Vaqueros’ season at 4-8. PLHS improved to 8-2-1. The game saw chippy play and a number of personal foul penalties assessed on both sides. The Vaqueros jumped out to a 7-0 first-quarter lead on a 97-yard run by quarterback Josh Murphy after a Ruben Diaz punt pinned the visitors against their own goal line. The play of the game came for the Pointers shortly after when, in the second quarter, leading rusher Jaivon Griffin went through the middle of the Vaquero defense before breaking into the clear and outrunning pursuers on a 97-yard run of his own. The run tied the score at 7 and, with a field goal by Felipe Soares, the Dogs grabbed a 10-7 lead at halftime. “We came out kind of feeling our way,” said Pointer head coach Mike Hastings. “But we found our stride in the middle of the second quarter.”   Receiving the second-half kickoff, the Pointers drove to score, with Eric Bueno’s first touchdown providing a 17-7 lead in a march that consumed nearly four minutes . In the waning moments of the third period, Griffin lobbed a halfback option pass downfield to swift receiver Matt Magers, who had to slow up before the ball arrived. Defenders ran Magers down at the five-yard line but the Dogs scored their third touchdown to go up 24-14.  El Capitan, however, came right back with a long pass play and advanced to the Pointers’ one yard line as the third quarter ended, scoring in the first seconds of the fourth quarter to get within three at 24-21. Following the kickoff, the Pointers scored again, Morris Mathews reaching the end zone with 10:25 left in the game, stretching the lead to 31-24. Following a 35-yard pass completion from quarterback Branden Martin to Griffin, Bueno swept to the left and outran defenders for his second six-pointer, building the lead to 38-21and icing the game for the Pointers with 6:22 to play. Finally, with 1:21 remaining, Pointer reserves drove for a final touchdown, Johnny Maes carrying it in to provide the final margin. Over the course of the game, the Dogs’ relentless defense wore down the Vaqueros. Murphy managed only 10 total yards on his other eight rushing attempts. Aaron Watkins snared a second-half interception, increasing his team-leading total. “Our defense played pretty well and the offense really started to click in the second half. Once our wheels started to spin on offense, we were hard to stop,” Hastings said. By game’s end, it had become a romp in the park. BITS ‘N’ BITES: • Hastings achieved a career milestone, overlooked during playoff excitement. The Pointers 61-13 rout of Serra on Nov. 10 was the 14-year veteran head coach’s 100th career victory. Hastings has been on the football staff at PLHS for 18 total years. • Local CIF officials require all playoff games to begin at 7 p.m., preventing the Pointers from hosting home games they’ve earned. Venerable Balboa Stadium seemed like home with airliners constantly passing overhead at low altitude. • By game’s end, Hastings was able to give playing time to several players moved up from the junior varsity team for the playoffs. • The low-seeded Vaqueros traveled to and defeated higher-seeded Mt. Carmel 35-13 on Nov. 18 to advance to the quarterfinals while the Pointers enjoyed a first-round bye.