By Joe Snyder
After being shut out at home by Orange Lutheran on Sept. 11, Serra High’s football team got back on the win column by rolling over Westlake Village Oaks Christian 41-0 in non-league play Friday at Serra.
The Cavaliers continued to have an outstanding performance by senior running back A.J. McBean and its defense. McBean rushed for 144 yards and two touchdowns, while their defense scored three touchdowns; two on interceptions and one on a fumble recovery.
Serra wasted little time on its first possession as McBean broke loose from the Warrior defense and sprinted 83 yards for the TD for a 7-0 lead with 7:42 left in the first quarter.
The Cavaliers extended that lead to 14-0 with 6:02 remaining in the first period when junior defensive back Dion Edwards intercepted a pass by Oaks Christian sophomore quarterback Niko Bladow and returned the ball 57 yards for the score.
Then junior defensive back Rashad Thornton had his turn picking off Bladow and sprinting 43 yards for a touchdown giving Serra a 21-0 lead with 4:21 to go in the quarter.
McBean completed a Cavalier scoring drive with a 3-yard TD run with 2:32 before halftime and Serra entered intermission with a 27-0 bulge.
The Cavaliers, who ended non-league at 3-2, put an exclamation mark on the Warriors with one touchdown each in the third and fourth quarters. With 3:58 remaining in the third, junior running back James Robinson scored on a 6-yard run for a 34-0 lead.
Serra’s defense put a grand finale when Coleman recovered a deflected ball and returned it 55 yards for a TD.
“I’m really excited on how the defense played,” Serra head coach Scott Altenberg said. “We were aggressive when we scored three touchdowns. We limited them (Oaks Christian) to 150 yards (total offense). Our offense was effective. We had a really good bounce back from the Olu (Orange Lutheran) game. We’re happy going into the bye week.”
The Cavaliers will have the rest this week before opening the brutal Mission League with their homecoming game against a very good Bishop Amat team. The Lancers started out 4-0 with easy wins over Santa Fe St. Paul, Oak Hills, Valencia and Culver City before losing their first game to Trinity League school San Juan Capistrano Junipero Serra 37-28 last Friday at Bishop Amat in La Puente. A week later, the Cavaliers follow with their final home game against a premiere Sierra Canyon squad from Chatsworth.
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North can’t keep up with Carson
After an inspiring 14-9 home win over Wilmington Banning on Sept. 11, the North Torrance High football team remained home against last year’s CIF-Los Angeles City Open Division champion Carson and the Saxons really had their hands full on the very talented Colts.
Throughout a large majority of the game, Carson proved dominant in routing the Saxons 48-14.
The Saxons, who fell to 2-3, had a difficult time in containing last season’s L.A. City Section and Daily Breeze South Bay Player of the Year Chris Fields III, who passed for 214 yards and two touchdowns.
The strong passing and running of Fields helped Carson score its first TD on a 3-yard run by Syncere Baker-Ross.
The Colts, who are 4-1 overall, scored their second touchdown on a 25-yard pass from Fields to Jorge Valencia with 34 seconds left in the first quarter.
After a field goal by Monica-Flores-Segovia, North quarterback Ezra Siitia fumbled while attempting to extend a play as Kingston Sula recovered the ball and ran it back 40 yards as Carson built a 24-0 halftime lead.
With the sizable deficit, the Saxons scored their first touchdown on a 75-yard ensuing kickoff return by Dakota Traylor but, following that, the Colts added another defensive TD by Derrick Myers as he caught a tipped pass and returned the ball 45 yards to the end zone for a 31-6 advantage.
From there, North tried to battle back in taking advantage of a pair of defensive penalties by Carson. On a fourth-down-and-goal play at the Colt 4-yard line, Siitia tossed the scoring pass to Joshua Pearson that was followed by a two-point conversion, cutting Carson’s lead to 31-14.
The Colts, though, put an exclamation mark on the Saxons scoring the game’s final 17 points. On just the second play of the ensuring drive, Fields ran a 53-yard keeper. On the ensuing kickoff, North fumbled as Sula recovered the ball. It was quickly followed by a 40-yard touchdown run by Fields. Later in the fourth period, Flores-Segovia connected on his second field goal for the final score.
Carson, which is 4-1, has a bye week before opening the Marine League at home against Gardena on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. The Panthers, who are struggling and don’t have a home field due to the recent demolition and rebuilding of their stadium, are 0-5 after being routed by host Santa Monica 42-8 last Friday. North also has a bye before opening the Pioneer League at home against cross town rival West Torrance next Thursday. The Warriors are on a three-game winning streak after losing their season opener to San Pedro. West rolled over Rolling Hills Estates Peninsula 35-6 Friday at West.
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Torrance rebounds over Lakewood
After a heartbreaking 21-19 loss to host Cypress High on Sept. 11, the Torrance High football team defeated host Lakewood High 38-13 in non-league play last Friday.
The Tartars, who improved to 3-2, were led by quarterback Gibson Turner who completed 15 of 19 passes for 205 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Vaughn Reinart rushed for 123 yards and one TD.
Torrance has a bye week before opening Pioneer League play at Santa Monica High on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m.
The Vikings, who improved to 4-1, breezed past Gardena 42-8 last Friday at Santa Monica.
The Panthers are winless in five non-league games as they close their preseason play at Los Angeles Harbor College against Gahr High from Cerritos today at 7 p.m. The Gladiators are 2-1-1 after losing their first game at home to Huntington Beach Ocean View 19-9 last Friday. This is Gardena’s first home game, away from its real home, this season. Gardena’s stadium was recently demolished as a new facility is being built.
West Torrance improved to 3-1 by rolling over Peninsula High from Rolling Hills Estates 35-6 last Friday at West.
The Warriors had fine games from quarterback Dominic Golia and running back Jack MacInnis. Golia passed for four touchdowns, while MacInnis scored three; two rushing and one receiving.
West, which won three straight games after losing its season opener to host San Pedro on Aug. 28, has its non-league finale at cross town rival South Torrance, now in the Ocean League after finishing last in the Pioneer the previous two seasons, Friday at 7 p.m. The Warriors, who won back-to-back Ocean crowns, open Pioneer at North Torrance on Oct. 2 at the same time.
In flag football, Serra High is 3-2 overall and 2-2 in the Camino Real League after losing to host Bishop Amat 12-7 last Monday in La Puente.
The Cavaliers began the league on Sept. 10, falling at home to a premiere St. Joseph High from Lakewood 27-0. Serra bounced back with back-to-back victories over host Long Beach St. Anthony 51-0 on Sept. 14 and visiting Inglewood St. Mary’s Academy 38-6 on Sept. 16.
Serra will play in the South Bay Showcase (site unavailable) on Friday and Saturday before resuming CRL action at St. Joseph Monday at 5 p.m. The Cavaliers host St. Anthony next Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
North Torrance’s flag football team improved to 2-1 in the Pioneer League with home wins over West Torrance 31-7 on Sept. 10 and 13-6 against El Segundo Wiseburn-Da Vinci last Thursday.
The Saxons played at Torrance last Tuesday and will visit Peninsula High in Rolling Hills Estates today at 3 p.m. North hosts El Segundo next Wednesday at 3:30 p.m.
