FONTANA -- Halting a dramatic comeback attempt, Miller made three consecutive stops in the closing seconds to secure its first CIF Southern Section semifinal berth in over three decades, with a 25-20 victory over Ontario in the CIF-SS Division 14 quarterfinal.
Despite a 94-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff from senior Samuel Abajuo, Ontario (7-5) could not find any offensive groove in the first two frames with just one first down in the opening half.
In a stark contrast, Miller (7-5) would score on each of its first three possessions and control the offensive game with 233 all-purpose yards and nearly 16 minutes of possession in the lopsided first half.
"I did not do a good enough job preparing us in the beginning of the game," Ontario head coach Jeremiah Budnovich said. "We have a very inexperienced team. Playoffs you have to go good from the jump."
Senior running back Daniel Rasura had two rushing touchdowns and over 100 rushing yards for Miller. Senior quarterback Jacob Sauceda had more than 100 all-purpose yards with a rushing touchdown.
The second half flipped the script for both teams.
Abajuo would eliminate a scoring chance for Miller with an end zone interception and followed it with a pair of unanswered rushing touchdowns to put Ontario back within one score with just under five minutes remaining.
Abajuo would finish the game with 169 rushing yards, 263 all-purpose yards, three touchdowns, an interception and double-digit tackles.
While having limited offense for most of the third and fourth quarters, Miller again used possession to their advantage, pushing Ontario's only offensive rebuttal to one minute with no timeouts.
Miller started its final defensive stand with back-to-back tackles for a loss by senior Ruben Garcia and sophomore Isaias Vazquez - both their third tackles for a loss in the game - while one last Hail Mary effort would fall just beyond the hands of any Ontario receiver, ending the Jaguars' season and securing the victory for the Rebels.
"Our defense came through in the end," Miller head coach Andrew Amosa said. "We made a lot of mental mistakes on offense in the second half. We just gotta be better at that next week and make sure we aren't making the same mistakes."
"It was motivating," Budnovich said of his team's resiliency. "Our second half was very positive, but in Game 12, we have to play a full 48 minutes, and we did not."
With the victory, Miller secured its first CIF-SS semifinal berth since 1993, the program's second varsity season.
"We've been trying to get there for a while," Amosa said. "This is my eighth year, and we've been in the quarterfinals three times since I've been here, but now we're in the semifinals and we're just happy to get there."
The Rebels will host South El Monte (8-4) on Friday with an opportunity to reach the program's first CIF-SS Final.
"This is a championship team," Amosa said. "Just have to get after it every day in practice and get better."