Before anyone could blink, Mesa Skyline had advanced in the playoffs.

SLIDESHOW: Friday night football action

The No. 11 Coyotes (8-3) created turnovers and scored on their first three possessions of the second half Friday as Skyline routed host Avondale La Joya, 50-28, in the first round of the 5A-II state playoffs.

“We had to become disciplined,” said Skyline coach Pete Jonovich. “We went over it (at halftime), and the kids came out and responded.”

Quarterback Mike Bailey marched the Coyotes down the field to start the second half and capped a 9-play, 73-yard drive with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Damari Lewis.

“This is big,” said Jonovich, whose team will face Marcos de Niza next. “The whole thing we talked about during the season was positioning ourselves in the playoffs.”

Bailey found Thomas Brown for a 7-yard touchdown pass to put the Coyotes up 36-20 with 5:39 left in the third.

Skyline’s defense wasn’t done. On the ensuing La Joya drive Damari Lewis intercepted a pass near the sideline and returned it to the La Joya 44-yard line. Three plays later Bailey found Brown again for a 38-yard touchdown pass.

Brown added to his three second-half touchdown catches with two rushing touchdowns of 1 and 3 yards in the first half.