About Steve Ramirez

Steve Ramirez has covered prep sports for San Gabriel Valley Newspapers since 1989.

Friday Night Final: St. Francis, Monrovia score league titles

GAMES OF THE WEEK
ST. FRANCIS 60, LA SALLE 0

LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE >> In time, St. Francis vs. La Salle may become one of the top high school football rivalries in the West Valley.
But Friday night the schools’ first meeting was instead a coronation for host St. Francis.
Jeremiah Martin accounted for 250 yards and six touchdowns and the Golden Knights clinched A a share of their first league title since 1997 with a 60-0 victory over the Lancers in an Angelus League game at Friedman Field.
Jasher Foster had four receptions for 125 yards receiving and two scores and Dylan Crawford had two for 41 yards and two touchdowns for St. Francis, which improved to 9-0 overall and 4-0 in league play. St. Francis, by virtue of Harvard-Westlake’s 28-14 win over Salesian, clinched the league’s No. 1 playoff spot.
La Salle slipped to 3-5 and 0-4.

— Stephen Ramirez
MONROVIA 24, LA CANADA 7
MONROVIA — Monrovia wrapped up the Rio Hondo league title Friday, beating La Canada 24-7. Octavius Spencer had two punt returns for touchdowns yards in the first half to lead the way on his senior night.
The combination of off-and-on rain and the majority of the student body deciding to skip the game made for a strange Halloween night.
“It was different not having all the fans behind us,” Spencer said. “I liked the atmosphere of the rain though. I like playing in weather games.”
Monrovia came into the game winning its last two by a combined score of 88-12.
The Wildcats (8-1, 4-0) couldn’t make plays early on to take control. When they did manage to move the ball, they had problems taking care of it with two early turnovers.

— Robert Schmitt
ROUNDUP
ROSEMEAD 51, SOUTH EL MONTE 14

Rosemead High School clinched at least a share of its first Mission Valley League championship in six years with a 51-14 victory over South El Monte on Friday night.
The Panthers (5-4, 5-0) can take the title outright if they defeat Mountain View next week.
The Eagles (3-6, 3-2) did not make it easy early on.

HOW THE TOP TEN FARED
1. St. Francis (9-0) def. La Salle, 60-0
2. Monrovia (8-1) def. La Canada, 24-7
3. Muir (5-3) def. Hoover, 40-0 (Thursday)
4. Maranatha (9-0), idle
5. San Marino (7-2) def. Blair, 76-8 (Thursday)
6. Pasadena Poly (9-0) def. Gabrielino, 49-20 (Thursday)
7. La Canada (6-3) lost to Monrovia, 24-7
8. Pasadena (4-5) lost to Crescenta Valley, 49-24
9. South Pasadena (6-3) def. Temple City, 41-18
10. La Salle (3-6) lost to St. Francis, 60-0
OTHER SCORES
Arroyo 56, Marshall 0
Rosemead 51, South El Monte 14
Schurr 34, Alhambra 0
Rio Hondo Prep 34, Firebaugh 14
Mary Star 69, Bosco Tech 20
Cathedral 36, St. Paul 13
San Gabriel 14, Keppel 6

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Thursday Night Final: Duarte no match for Azusa; Muir takes care of business

Duarte plays Azusa at Duarte High School in Duarte during Thursday night's game, on October 30, 2014. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/Pasadena Star-News)

Duarte plays Azusa at Duarte High School in Duarte during Thursday night’s game, on October 30, 2014. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/Pasadena Star-News)

AZUSA 49, DUARTE 30
DUARTE —
With just three rushes this season entering Thursday night’s game, junior Dominic Ramirez totaled only 30 yards.
With his first three touches of the ball Thursday, the 5-foot-8 Azusa High School running back totaled three touchdowns on runs of 69, 46 and 4 yards.
And he wasn’t through as he ran for another two scores and finished with 179 yards on 11 carries as the Aztecs defeated host Duarte, 49-30, in a Montview League game.
“I just told the coach to put the ball in my hands and I’ll make something happen,” Ramirez said.
“I know I’m not the biggest, but that means that I have to be the fastest.”

— John Sherrard
MUIR 40, HOOVER 0
PASADENA —
There was no chocolate, strawberry or even pistachio in Muir High School’s 40-0 Pacific League game against Hoover on Thursday night.
“We just wanted to play vanilla football,” Muir coach John Hardy Jr. said. “That’s all we wanted to do.”
The Mustangs ran right at the Tornadoes, scoring on their first five drives. Muir (5-4, 5-1) had a 27-0 lead and a running clock at the end of the first quarter.
“We wanted to come out here and do the basic part of football,” Hardy said. “That is run the football, execute your blocks, have a couple of pass plays and just stay healthy.”
— Keith Lair
OTHER SCORES
Crescenta Valley 49, Pasadena 24
Burbank 56, Arcadia 14

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Friday Night Final: Muir comes up short in Pac League showdown; St. Francis rolls; Poly routs Rio

Muir plays Crescenta Valley at Muir High School in Pasadena during Friday night's game, on October 24, 2014. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/Pasadena Star-News)

Muir plays Crescenta Valley at Muir High School in Pasadena during Friday night’s game, on October 24, 2014. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/Pasadena Star-News)

GAMES OF THE WEEK
CRESCENTA VALLEY 38, MUIR 26

PASADENA — The Muir High School football team’s hopes of repeating as Pacific League champion took a big hit on Friday night as visiting Crescenta Valley proved its undefeated record is no fluke.
The Falcons used two second-half touchdown passes by quarterback Brian Gadsby to post a 38-26 win over the Mustangs. With just two league games remaining for both teams, it would take something unforeseen for Crescenta Valley not to win the league championship.
Crescenta Valley improved to 8-0 overall and 5-0 in league. Muir fell to 4-4 overall and 4-1 in league. The Mustangs also had their four-game win streak snapped.

— Aram Tolegian

ST. FRANCIS 49, ST. PAUL 10
SANTA FE SPRINGS — Some viewed the St. Francis High School football team’s Friday night encounter at St. Paul as the ultimate trap game.
But it was the host Swordsmen who got caught.
Jeremiah Martin threw for 200 yards and three scores and the Golden Knights showed no signs of last week’s big win over Cathedral with a 49-10 victory at St. Paul in an Angelus League game.
Dylan Crawford had seven receptions for 120 yards and two touchdowns and Mason Williams and Andrew MacKinnon had return scores for Golden Knights (8-0, 3-0).
Jacob Maier accounted for 96 yards and a touchdown for St. Paul (4-4, 1-2).
St. Francis put it away by halftime. The Golden Knights were nearly perfect during the first two quarters and took a 35-10 lead at the break.
St. Francis, which outgained St. Paul 217-134, in the first half, scored on three of its first four possessions, had an interception return for a touchdown and a punt return for a score.

— Stephen Ramirez
SAN MARINO 55, LA CANADA 14
LA CANADA — The Dynamic Duo of Glazier and Shohfi put on a show.
San Marino quarterback Carson Glazier and wide receiver JP Shohfi helped solidify the Titans’ hold on, at the very least, the No. 2 spot in the Rio Hondo League as they defeated host La Canada 55-14 Friday night.
Glazier had a fantastic game, going 14 for 21 for 361 yards and six touchdown passes and two interceptions. Glazier threw touchdown passes of 16, 39, 69, 43, 49 and 46 yards. Not to outdone, he also ran for a 14-yard touchdown.
Glazier’s favorite target was Shohfi as the duo connected on four touchdown passes.
When told about his stats, Glazier was all smiles but also humble.
“It was awesome! But it’s not my job to score touchdowns,” he said. “It’s my job to win games, and get closer to the playoffs.”

— Guillermo Tovar
ROUNDUP: Poly ends losing skein to Rio, routs Kares
Undefeated Pasadena Poly ended an eight-year losing streak to Rio Hondo Prep, smashing the host Kares, 51-12, in a Prep League game on Friday night.
The victory ended Rio Hondo Prep’s 28-game Prep League winning streak on the night the Kares celebrated their 50th anniversary and on their homecoming night. Poly last defeated Rio Hondo 20-0 in 2006. Poly won the league title that season.
Running back Griffin Carter led the Panthers (8-0, 2-0) with five touchdowns, four on the ground and a 58-yard TD pass from Parker Matthews. He finished with 177 yards as the Panthers led, 42-0, at the half.
Vincent Porter caught a 94-yard TD pass from Matthews and Dylan Hanel rushed for 87 yards.

HOW THE TOP TEN FARED
1. St. Francis (8-0) def. St. Paul, 49-10
2. Monrovia (7-1) def. South Pasadena, 32-6
3. Muir (4-4) lost to Crescenta Valley, 38-26
4. San Marino (6-2) def. La Canada, 55-14
5. Maranatha (9-0) def. Heritage Chr., 42-24
6. La Canada (6-2) lost to San Marino, 55-14
7. Pasadena Poly (8-0) def. Rio Hondo Prep, 51-12
8. South Pasadena (5-3) lost to Monrovia, 32-6
9. Pasadena (4-4) def. Glendale, 21-20
10. La Salle (3-5 lost to Salesian, 14-7
OTHER SCORES
Arroyo 28, Gabrielino 6
Rosemead 48, Marshall 6
Duarte 49, Workman 9
Alhambra 49, Keppel 0
Montebello 20, San Gabriel 0
St. Anthony 59, Bosco Tech 0
Mary Star 38, Flintridge Prep 23
Temple City 53, Blair 28

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Thursday Final: Burroughs too much for Arcadia, 70-23

Arcadia plays Burroughs at Burroughs High School in Burbank during Thursday night's game, on October 23, 2014. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/Pasadena Star-News)

Arcadia plays Burroughs at Burroughs High School in Burbank during Thursday night’s game, on October 23, 2014. (Photo by Sarah Reingewirtz/Pasadena Star-News)

By Keith Lair
BURBANK >>
The Arcadia High School football coaching staff was yelling out what host Burroughs was going to run in Thursday night’s Pacific League matchup,
The problem was that the Apaches had difficulty stopping the Indians’ offense.
“We didn’t have many answers,” Arcadia coach Andrew Policky said. “They are just the better football team than we are right now.”
Burroughs scored the first 10 times it had the ball en route to a 70-23 victory. Arcadia has yet to defeat Burroughs in the current league configuration and it was the most points the Apaches have given up in more than a decade.
Burroughs quarterback Andy Amela, who had missed the last three games because of a concussion, threw for four first-half touchdowns and completed 13 of 16 passes for 244 yards. He played on the opening series of the second half, but did not throw a pass.
“It felt good to finally get back,” the junior said. “It sucked sitting and watching. I came in pumped and wanting to play.”
The Indians (5-3, 3-2) scored on every drive of the first half for a 49-9 halftime lead. Erick Hernandez caught three of those touchdown passes and had six catches for 152 yards in the first half.

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Friday Night Rewind: St. Francis takes lead in Angelus with win at Cathedral; Muir looking good; San Marino routs rival South Pas

St. Francis celebrates after defeating Cathedral 52-41 during a prep football game at Cathedral High School in Los Angeles, Calif., Friday, Oct. 17, 2014. (Photo by Keith Birmingham/ Pasadena Star-News)

St. Francis celebrates after defeating Cathedral 52-41 during a prep football game at Cathedral High School in Los Angeles, Calif., Friday, Oct. 17, 2014. (Photo by Keith Birmingham/ Pasadena Star-News)


GAMES OF THE WEEK
ST. FRANCIS 52, CATHEDRAL 41


LOS ANGELES >> St. Francis High School ran for 271 yards and had 509 total, but the Golden Knights are in first place today because of their defense.
Avery Williams had two interceptions and St. Francis had three during a two-minute stretch in the fourth quarter to score a 52-41 victory over host Cathedral on Friday in a key Angelus League game.
Jeremiah Martin also accounted for 334 yards and three touchdowns for the Golden Knights, who improved to 7-0 and 2-0 in league play. Areg Nazarian rushed for 144 yards and two scores, and Williams also had a touchdown run for St. Francis, which opened the game with three scores on its first three possessions and closed it by scoring on four of six possessions in the second half.
Andrew Tovar threw for 456 yards and six touchdowns for the Phantoms, who slipped to 6-1 and 1-1. Tovar had 332 yards passing during the first two quarters.
“It’s just a great feeling to bounce back and come back in a game like this,” St. Francis coach Jim Bonds said. “We won the second half, 31-7. It was all three phrases. We said we’re going to get the ball kicked to us, we’re going to go down and score, stop them, and score again.
“The only thing different was we kicked a field goal on that second drive and were down by three instead of being up by a point. Guys hung in there, and they just kept battling. Our guys never gave up, and that tells a lot about our team.”
— Stephen Ramirez
MUIR 56, ARCADIA 16
ARCADIA — After a lackadaisical first half, Muir came out in the second half and looked like the dominating team many expect to see every Friday night. The Mustangs improved to 4-3 overall, but more importantly remain undefeated in Pacific League play at 3-0 as they beat host Arcadia 56-16 Friday night.
Normally such a lopsided win, especially in league play, would make a coach at the very least, content. But coach John Hardy Jr was not happy at all with his team’s effort.
“We had a bad week of practice and it showed,” said Hardy. “Guys didn’t take this game seriously like they needed to. I could’ve bailed them out by calling a couple of different plays (offensively and defensively). But I wanted them to struggle to see what it takes for a championship team. You have to practice hard every week and do the things to be a successful team.”
When asked what changed from the first half to the second half, Hardy didn’t mince any words.
“I had a conversation with them and I asked them if they were done ‘playing around’ and are ready to play football. Or do they want a repeat of the first half. And they responded.”

— Guillermo Tovar
SAN MARINO 57, SOUTH PASADENA 14
SAN MARINO — San Marino High School hosted South Pasadena in the 60th meeting between the schools with the all-time series tied at 28-28-3 for the Titans’ Rio Hondo League opener, and the Tigers came in riding a five-game win streak.
On Friday night the host Titans, who appeared this week in the rankings of the CIF-SS Central Division for the first time at No. 10 despite losing their league opener to Monrovia, got back to their winning ways as San Marino defeated South Pasadena 57-14 to claim the traveling Paul Crowley Cup and the overall series lead.
“It was a great victory, absolutely a great victory,” San Marino coach Mike Hobbie said. “I knew they were going to be tough. I didn’t know we’d beat them like this, but we were lucky we got the turnovers in key spots.”
The win for San Marino (5-2, 1-1) means Hobbie, who is in his fourth year as head coach, extends his perfect record against the rest of the Rio Hondo, other than four losses to perennial champion Monrovia, to 13-0.
Titan quarterback Carson Glazier, who threw for six touchdowns last week with five in the first half, threw for another four before the break against the Tigers and finished with six once again. The junior finished 21 of 28 for 375 yards, the six scores, and no turnovers.

— Nathan Cambridge
ROUNDUP
ROSEMEAD 33, GABRIELINO 14

Rosemead High School scored twice in the first two minutes of the third quarter to take a 33-14 victory over Gabrielino and a commanding lead in the Mission Valley League on Friday night.
Robbie Franco scored on a 45-yard run and Jordan Parham returned an interception 23 yards in the opening minutes of the third quarter for a 27-7 Panthers (3-4, 3-0) lead.
Junior quarterback Steven Nava passed for 211 yards on 10 of 25 attempts with two TDs, 5 yards to Joseph Rosales and 59 yards to Louis Luna. The Panthers intercepted Gabrielino quarterback Elijah Peters three times and they also recovered a fumble.

HOW THE TOP 10 FARED
1. St. Francis (7-0) def. Cathedral, 52-41
2. Monrovia (6-1) def. Temple City, 56-6
3. Muir (4-3) def. Arcadia, 56-16
4. Maranatha (8-0) def. Village Christian, 26-3
5. San Marino (5-2) def. South Pasadena, 57-14
6. La Canada (6-1) def. Blair, 36-0
7. Pasadena Poly (7-0) def. CSDR, 48-14 (Thurs)
8. Rio Hondo Prep (3-4) lost to Fillmore, 27-0
9. South Pasadena (5-2) lost to San Marino, 57-14
10. La Salle (3-4) lost to Harvard-Westlake, 39-3
OTHER SCORES
Rosemead 33, Gabrielino 14
Gladstone 47, Duarte 7
Bell Gardens 36, Alhambra 7
Montebello 23, Keppel 0
Schurr 55, San Gabriel 0
Burroughs/Burbank 17, Pasadena 14
St. Monica 50, Bosco Tech 12
TODAY’S GAME
Firebaugh vs. Flintridge Prep at La Canada HS, 7 p.m.

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