Hart Risks Win Streak on the Road

Hart High, fresh off its season-opening, 41-21 victory over Canyon, enters tonight’s nonleague football game at Mission Viejo with one of its chief weapons hobbled.

Tailback Craig Whitten, who has 5 catches for 140 yards and 2 touchdowns, strained the Achilles’ tendon in his left foot in practice this week and might not play. Coach Rick Scott said he would wait until kickoff at 7:30 p.m. to make a decision on Whitten, who also gained 69 yards on 18 carries last week.

If he is unable to play, Hart will use a one-back offense featuring fullback Elliot Graeber, who gained 51 yards on three carries against Canyon.

Hart, ranked No. 1 in the Southern Section’s Northwestern Conference poll, still has plenty of offensive weapons. In his first start as a varsity quarterback, Darren Renfro ran for three touchdowns and passed for two more. The senior completed 16 of 23 passes for 265 yards and was The Times Valley player of the week.

Whitten caught five passes, including an 80-yard touchdown, and tight end Brian Allen caught five passes for 50 yards.

Hart, ranked second in The Times Valley poll, risks a 14-game winning streak against Mission Viejo, which is ranked seventh in the Southern Conference. Hart started its streak with a 14-13 victory over Mission Viejo last year. Mission Viejo, which opened with a 14-3 victory over Morse of San Diego, was the only team to hold Hart under 20 points last season.

Thousand Oaks, ranked seventh in the Valley, plays a nonleague game against Buena at Ventura High. Thousand Oaks beat Inglewood, 62-6, last week behind running back Marc Monestime (118 yards).

Buena lost to Westlake, 13-12, when the Bulldogs botched a 20-yard field-goal attempt with six seconds left in the game.