Saturday Rewind: La Mirada wins Suburban; Cantwell takes piece of South Catholic

Sei-j Lauago of La Mirada breaks open a big run to set up the Matadores final score of the first half. The Matadores beat Norwalk Lancers, 35-21, to win the Suburban League title.  (Photo by Chris Burt/ for Press-Telegram)

Sei-j Lauago of La Mirada breaks open a big run to set up the Matadores final score of the first half. The Matadores beat Norwalk Lancers, 35-21, to win the Suburban League title.
(Photo by Chris Burt/ for Press-Telegram)

It was league championship Friday, and two of the area teams claimed respective league titles with wins. La Mirada won the Suburban League with a 35-21 win over Norwalk. Cantwell took a share of the South Catholic League with a 56-34 victory over Bishop Montgomery. The Cardinals are tri-champs with Bishop Montgomery and Verbum Dei, which beat St. Bernard. Cantwell won the coin flip and will be the league’s No. 1 playoff representative. Bishop Montgomery also advances, with Verbum Dei needing to apply for an at-large spot.
Below is this week’s rundown:
GAMES OF THE WEEK
LA MIRADA 35, NORWALK 21

LA MIRADA — Big plays helped carry La Mirada High into the Suburban League championship game on Friday night against Norwalk, and big plays were the difference for the Matadors offense in a 35-21 victory at La Mirada High.
La Mirada quarterback Christian Lara completed nine of his 12 pass attempts, and five of them were for touchdowns to four different receivers. The senior finished with 250 yards through the air, 180 in the first half, when the Matadores broke out to a 28-0 halftime lead. Norwalk’s running game controlled the clock in the second half, but the lead was insurmountable.
“I’m proud of these players, coaches and this community,” said La Mirada head coach Mike Moschetti, who has led his Matadores to five Suburban League titles in the last six years. Norwalk (7-3, 5-1) won it last season. This season, La Mirada (9-1, 6-0) is ranked No. 2 in the Southeast Division.

— JJ Fiddler
LA HABRA 56, SONORA 26
LA HABRA — For the eighth consecutive season, La Habra is the Freeway League champion, clinching the outright title with a 56-26 victory over visiting Sonora on Friday night.
Quarterback Eric Barriere did a lot of damage in a short amount of time, racking up 342 total yards (223 passing and 119 rushing) to go along with seven touchdown passes. He exited the game after the third quarter with the Highlanders up comfortably, 56-13.
The Highlanders (7-3, 5-0) entered the game as the third-ranked team in the CIF-SS Southwest Division, having won 40 consecutive league games, a streak that dates back to October 2006.
After being tied 7-7 at the end of the first quarter, La Habra broke the game open in the second quarter scoring 28 consecutive points before the break to take a 35-7 halftime lead.
Justin Sun and Edrick Flores were the main beneficiaries of Barriere’s big night, catching three and two touchdowns,respectively.

— Richard Hernandez
CANTWELL 56, BISHOP MONTGOMERY 34
The Cardinals scored 42 points in the second and third quarters to get a share of the South Catholic League title. Cantwell finished the regular season 8-1 overall and 2-1 in league play. They won the coin flip and will be the league’s No. 1 playoff representative.
Matt Valencia threw for 233 yards and two touchdowns and Javier Tejada scored five touchdowns for the Cardinals.
MARANATHA 69, WHITTIER CHRISTIAN 34
WHITTIER — For the first time in 31 years the Maranatha High School football team completed a perfect 10-0 regular season and will head into the CIF Southern Section Northwest Division.
The Minutemen easily defeated host Whittier Christian 69-34 at Whittier College to head into the playoffs next Friday as the top seed in the division.
Leading the way for the Minutemen was senior running back Caleb Devine with three touchdowns and 182 yards on 12 carries. He scored on runs of 65, 30 and 1 yard.
Whittier Christian freshman quarterback Quinn Commons threw for a game-high 227 yards on 31 attempts, completing 20 passes, while senior tight end Noah Evans caught nine passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns.

— John Sherrard
ROUNDUP
LA SERNA 42, WHITTIER 7

La Serna High School went deep to secure second place in the Del Rio League with a 42-7 victory over Whittier in a game played at California High on Friday night.
The Lancers struck with three touchdowns of 20 yards or more. They had a 35-0 halftime lead.

HOW THE TOP TEN FARED
1. La Mirada (9-1) def. Norwalk, 35-21
2. La Habra (7-3) def. Sonora, 56-26
3. El Rancho (8-2) def. Santa Fe, 49-31 (Thursday)
4. La Serna (8-2) def. Whittier, 42-7
5. California (6-4) def. Pioneer, 42-13 (Thursday)
6. Cantwell (8-2) def. Bishop Montgomery, 56-34
7. St. Paul (4-6) lost to Harvard-Westlake, 45-0
8. Montebello (6-4*) def. Alhambra, 28-21
9. Schurr (4-6) def. Keppel, 56-0
10. Whittier (4-6) lost to La Serna, 42-7
OTHER SCORE
Maranatha 69, Whittier Christian 34

Facebook Twitter Reddit Tumblr Email