A 50-yard pass from B.J. Denker to Robert Abeyta that would have put Cerritos College at the 2-yard-line with under 2 minutes to play was negated by an offensive pass interference penalty, and Mt. SAC held on to beat the visiting Falcons 17-14 in Saturday's SCFA final.
Trailing by three points, Cerritos began its final drive at its own 14 with 3:58 left in the game. Allie Long had runs of 16 and 11 yards to move the Falcons toward midfield, and the Falcons faced third-and-3 from their own 48.
Quarterback B.J. Denker eluded the Moutie pass rush and rolled to his left when he saw Abeyta open near the 10. Denker launched the ball down field, and Abeyta caught the ball despite being covered by three defenders and was tackled at the 2. The Falcons appeared poised to take the lead and advance to their first state title game in program history.
But Abeyta was flagged for pushing off the defenders to create space for himself, nullifying the play and moving the ball back to the Cerritos 33. Denker threw an incompletion on third down and was intercepted on fourth down, allowing Mt. SAC (11-1) to run out the clock.
The loss snapped Cerritos' six-game winning streak and ended its season at 8-4. It was the second consecutive year the Falcons lost to Mt. SAC in the SCFA final but a far cry from last year's 51-0 rout.
The Mounties are the two-time defending state champs and will visit City College of San Francisco (11-0) on Dec. 10 to play for the state title. The game will be a rematch of last year's title game, which Mt. SAC won, 34-7.
Controversial call ends Cerritos' season
About the Bloggers
Prep Sports Editor Dave Werstine has worked in and around the greater Long Beach area covering high school sports since the mid-1980s. Dave sums up his own athletic career as a "Jack of all trades and a master of none." Whether the ball is kicked, hit or thrown, Dave enjoys being part of it. If you have game, e-mail opinions, story ideas or news tips to dave.werstine@dailybreeze.com.
David Felton is a lifelong sports fan who began covering prep athletics in 1990. He's lived and worked in Long Beach since 2000 and has developed a deep respect and appreciation for the athletic history of this community. Email him at dave.felton@dailybreeze.com.
Robert Morales began covering prep sports in the greater Long Beach area in 2007. When a local football coach asked him how he felt about reporting on preps after many years of covering boxing, auto racing and various other sports, he replied, "Hey, if I'm going to cover prep sports anywhere, I'm glad it's this area because of the level of athletics, the intensity displayed by the athletes and coaches and the support of the community." Email him at robert.morales@dailybreeze.com.
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