CARLSBAD – The La Costa Canyon High Mavericks, top-seeded in the San Diego Section Division I football playoffs, proved they were worthy of that status last night against the Vista Panthers.

Having gotten no favors from the seeding committee in facing a red-hot Vista team in the quarterfinals, LCC rode the legs of junior running back Seth Hanson for 207 yards on 16 carries, as the Mavericks wore down the Panthers for a 38-18 victory.

The Mavericks (9-2) rushed for 318 yards overall against a Vista defense that had not allowed a point in its past three games.

“Offensively, it was a pretty good football game for us,” said Mavericks coach Darrin Brown. “We never punted. I don't like the fact that we put it on the ground a couple of times, but otherwise we came together and dealt with some adversity.”

Hanson also caught a 69-yard scoring pass in the first quarter to put the Mavericks ahead 14-3. He finished off the Panthers with a 38-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter.

“We knew coming in we couldn't be stopped if we played mistake-free football,” Hanson said. “Our offensive line played the best it has all year. I just ran hard.”

Vista cut the lead to 14-10 on a 4-yard David Fisher pass to Ian Richardson on the final play of the first quarter. The Panthers got the ball back and appeared poised to take the lead and the momentum, but the drive stalled and a fake punt was short of the first down at the Panthers' 45.

The Mavericks seized the opportunity, with quarterback Sebastian Frausto going the final 5 yards of the drive for the score with 2:35 left in the half.

Then came the game's key play. Vista quickly drove down the field and faced fourth-and goal from the 1. The Panthers eschewed the field goal and fumbled into the end zone. LCC's Tucker Toolson grabbed the ball and Vista never really recovered.

“That changed the momentum,” said Vista coach Dan Williams, whose team ended its season at 7-5. “We didn't think they would be able to run the ball like that on us. We thought they would come out throwing. We just picked a bad night to play poorly.”

The Panthers lost despite a game effort from Fisher, a senior who completed 13-of-20 passes for 200 yards and ran for 66 yards on 13 carries.

The adversity that Brown spoke of came early. The Mavericks lost one of their best players in the first period when senior linebacker Jacob Driver was ejected after the officials said he threw a punch. Brown told his players after the game to ask parents who may have videotaped the game for footage. Brown said Driver was just trying to strip the ball. Driver faces possible disciplinary action, which could include missing the semifinals against Carlsbad.