NEWS AND NOTES FROM PRESS ROW – Cerritos cross country girls win first 605 League cluster with ease, Whitney boys victorious

By Loren Kopff • @LorenKopff on X

The first 605 League cross country cluster race took place on Sept. 11 at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley, and it was more of the same for the Cerritos High girls, doubling up second place Whitney High. Following the race, it was the Whitney boys who held on for a five-point win over Cerritos.

In the girls race, four of the seven Cerritos runners claimed the top nine spots, led by senior Anna Field, the overall winner who crossed the finish line with a time of 18:45. Over two minutes later came Whitney sophomore Katherine Low (21:05), then Cerritos sophomore Kalana Nguyen (21:21). Artesia High’s top runner, sophomore Genesis Flores, came in fifth place with a time of 21:56, followed by Cerritos sophomore Daisy Lee (22:05), Whitney freshman Madison Lee (22:25), Artesia freshman Nya Crespin (22:39) and Cerritos sophomore Nandini Panchal (22:49). The final three Cerritos runners would take spots 12-14-sophomores Maye Zarate (23:29) and Yuying Sun (23:56) and senior Zilian Liu (24:17).
Whitney would have four more runners finish in the top 20 while John Glenn High brought four runners with junior Melanie Patino finishing in 20^th with a time of 25:25. Cerritos picked up 31 points, followed by Oxford Academy and Whitney with 62 points each while Artesia had 74 points.

It was a thinner field for the boys as there were only 25 runners out of a possible 42 but with Whitney junior Christian Ishiki and Whitney senior Ethan Choi taking home the top two spots at 17:03 and 17:21, respectively, the Wildcats had enough to get past Cerritos 31-36. Coming in a distant third was Oxford Academy with 61 points while Artesia and Glenn did not have a runner.

After Oxford Academy’s Hara Seyoum finished in third place, the next four spots were occupied by Cerritos harriers, led by senior Howard Lee (17:30). After him it was freshman Vincent Valenzuela (17:30), sophomore Allan Woolley (17:48) and junior Nicholas Melendrez (18:01).

Next came Whitney junior Avery Chen at 18:04 and his teammate, senior Damian Moreno at 18:06. Whitney’s last three runners would lockdown 11^th, 12^th and 13^th with junior Brendan Ferry (18:29), senior Matthew Low (18:38) and junior Jai Sukhadia (18:38).

The next cluster meet will be held on Oct. 9.

FOOTBALL

Mountain View High (1-3) @ Artesia (4-0)-This figures to be a mismatch as the Pioneers continue with one of their best starts in school history. Artesia edged Ocean View High 14-13 last Friday as senior quarterback Charlie Lopez had another stellar game, rushing for 92 yards on 19 carries while completing all three of his passes to senior wide receiver Ahkil Sampson for 42 yards. Junior running backs Josue Flores and Joe Thomas Jr. each scored a touchdown. The Pioneers have not allowed more than 16 points since giving up 26 points to Long Beach Cabrillo High in the season opener. This is also Artesia’s homecoming game.

Mountain View has lost three straight games by a combined score of 95-19, including last Friday’s 42-12 setback to La Quinta High. Mountain View’s lone win was against Mark Keppel High, 63-22, whom Artesia slammed 54-6 the following week. Running back Kevin Ramon gained 145 yards and scored twice against La Quinta and is part of a rushing attack that has gained nearly 850 yards.

Prediction: Artesia 35, Mountain View 7

Cerritos (3-1) @ West Torrance High (1-2)-After doming its first two opponents to the tune of a 75-0 combined score, the Dons have been tested by Portola High and Valley Christian High recently, scoring 35 points while yielding 42. Last Friday, the Dons trailed 28-0 before scoring a pair of third quarter touchdowns. The bread and butter of the offense continues to be the running game as seniors Dikshanta Adhikari and Josiah Ungos have combined for nearly 700 yards while junior quarterback Justin Sagun has added another 102 on the ground. He has also thrown for 253 yards with top target senior wide receiver Ruben Castro catching 21 passes for 224 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Last season, Cerritos got past West Torrance 27-21 in the fourth game of the season.

West Torrance lost to rival North Torrance High 40-30, a week after dismantling Santa Monica High 30-6. This is the second meeting between the two in at least 27 years.

Prediction: Cerritos 28, West Torrance 21

Los Altos High (1-2) @ Gahr High (2-2)-The Gladiators may be finding their groove as they have won two in a row after getting past Garden Grove High 14-12 last Thursday. Senior running back Markell Slaughter scored once to bring his season total to six while senior running back Dylan Richburg scored the other touchdown as the blue and gold have scored 57 points in their two wins.

On the other side, Los Altos has lost two in a row, including a 21-16 defeat to Burroughs High out of Burbank last Friday. Diego Castillo passed for 221 yards and both touchdowns but was intercepted twice while the Conquerors failed to get 100 yards on the ground. In fact, the 98 rushing yards against the Bears is a season high. This is the first meeting between the two in at least 27 years.

Prediction: Gahr 31, Los Altos 17

La Quinta (3-0) @ Glenn (1-2)-Last time out, which was on Sept. 6, Glenn was blanked by University High out of the CIF-Los Angeles City Section 6-0. The Eagles have scored just three touchdowns and one safety this season, but one touchdown in the last 10 quarters. Last week was to have been the Mayor’s Cup game with Norwalk High, which was canceled. This is the first meeting with the Aztecs since 2009, a 55-14 Glenn win. From 1998-2009, Glenn won eight of 10 games against La Quinta.

To say that the Aztecs are rolling would be an understatement. When they slammed Mountain View 42-12, it was the third time they have scored over 40 points this season. On top of that, Glenn’s run defense will be put to the test because La Quinta has already rushed for nearly 1,300 yards and has five players over 100 yards. Also, the defense has given up 18 points in the last two games.

Prediction: La Quinta 42, Glenn 7

GAME OF THE WEEK

La Mirada High (1-3) @ La Habra High (3-1)-This game was played on Sept. 19. La Mirada got into the win column last Friday, scoring a touchdown in each quarter for a 29-7 win over Long Beach Jordan High last Friday. Junior running back Jordan Lauago scored all four touchdowns on runs of five, two, five and 24 yards, bringing his season total to six. This is the second straight road game in a stretch of four in five games for the Matadores, who have now scored 91 points. This is the first time since 2014 La Mirada has faced La Habra. In that game, the Matadores were victorious 45-28, their second over the Highlanders since 2009.

After falling to Upland High 26-23 in the season opener, La Habra has been getting better and better, culminating with a 42-8 win over Orange High last Friday. The Highlanders rushed for 360 yards against the Panthers, including 141 yards from Kevika Martinez and 96 more from Bobby Brooks. Martinez leads the team with 475 yards on the ground and is one of four runners with more than 180 yards on the ground. As a team, the Highlanders have rushed for nearly 1,300 yards. Defensively, La Habra already has nine sacks.

Prediction: La Habra 31, La Mirada 14

Linfield Christian High (1-2) @ Norwalk (2-1)-Norwalk didn’t play last Friday but for the second straight game, will face a quality opponent. The Lancers fell to Scripps Ranch High 29-12 on Sept. 6, getting a two-yard touchdown run from junior running back Diego Cerritos and a six-yard run from senior running back Ezra Meuller. Those two have combined for 780 yards and nine of the 11 touchdowns Norwalk has scored on the ground. Norwalk quarterbacks have completed five passes, but four of them have gone for touchdowns.

Linfield Christian knocked off Tahquitz High 43-28 to push its season point total to 105, five less than what Norwalk has. Quarterback Thomas Paschal completed 16 of 31 passes for 137 yards to six different receivers, but the Lions got four rushing touchdowns. Both losses by the Lions have been by a point to Christian High out of San Diego and Dimond High out of Anchorage, Alaska, the second-ranked team in the 49^th state according to MaxPreps.com. Last season, the Lancers traveled to Temecula and lost to Linfield Christian 22-20 in the only other meeting between the schools.

Prediction: Norwalk 28, Linfield Christian 24

Valley Christian (4-0) @ Sierra Vista High (0-3)-Last season, V.C. whitewashed Sierra Vista 38-0 and by all accounts, this one should put the Defenders at 5-0 heading into their bye week. Senior quarterback Austin Abrahams completed four passes for 129 yards and a touchdown in last Friday’s 28-14 win over previously unbeaten Cerritos. He is now 47 of 68 for 764 yards and six touchdowns this season while rushing 44 times for 177 yards and 10 more touchdowns. Junior running back Karsen Wesley is the only other running back to gain over 100 yards while junior wide receivers Dylan Teays and Lucas Witt each have over 200 yards. on defense, junior Cole Hefner (three and a half sacks) is one of six players who has at least one of the team’s 11 sacks.

Sierra Vista fell to Baldwin Park High 40-8 last Friday and has been outscored 134-26 this season. Baldwin Park had lost to V.C. 14-13 the previous week.

Prediction: V.C. 42, Sierra Vista 7

Last week’s predictions: 2-2

Season to date: 16-7

FLAG FOOTBALL

In a one-week span, Artesia was pummeled by Mayfair High 46-6 last Wednesday, shutout Paramount High 13-0 this past Monday and fell to Savanna High 22-7 this past Tuesday. The Pioneers will host Bellflower High on Monday while Gahr had one of the biggest shutouts in the brief two-year existence of the sport. The Gladiators (8-2) destroyed Whitney 64-0 this past Monday for their fifth shutout of the season. Gahr will host Paramount on Monday and visit Norwalk on Wednesday.

Glenn lost to Norwalk 25-14 this past Monday and has lost three in a row to fall to 1-7. The Eagles hosted La Serna High on Sept. 19 and will welcome Culver City High on Monday before going to Western High on Wednesday.

La Mirada dropped a 22-6 decision to Troy High this past Monday and is 3-5 as it hosts Bellflower on Monday while Norwalk’s win over Glenn ended a two-game losing streak and put the Lancers at 6-6. Norwalk will host Downey High on Tuesday before facing Gahr.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Artesia defeated Glenn in four sets this past Tuesday to even its 605 League record after two matches. The Pioneers, who are 4-5 overall, visit Cerritos on Friday before hosting Whitney on Tuesday. Cerritos went 3-2 in the Bellflower/Valley Christian Tournament last Friday and Saturday to even its record at 10-10. The day before the tournament, the Dons fell to Whitney in the 605 League opener, the first time Cerritos has lost a 605 League match since it was formed in 2018. Cerritos will host Pioneer High on Tuesday.

Gahr High won its first two pool play matches of the Bellflower/Valley Christian Tournament, then lost the next three to fall to 15-12. The Gladiators then fell to La Mirada High 10-25, 26-24, 26-24, 15-25, 13-25 this past Tuesday in their Gateway League opener and faced Downey on Sept. 19. Gahr will then host Warren High on Tuesday before going to Norwalk on Thursday. Glenn (10-4, 4-1) will host Whitney on Friday and Oxford Academy on Tuesday while V.C. has been busy lately. The Defenders swept Whittier Christian High 25-15, 25-16. 25-10 last Thursday in the Olympic League opener, then fell to Ontario Christian High 25-20, 25-17, 25-10 this past Monday. The next day, Village Christian High knocked off the Defenders (15-4, 1-1) 25-21, 18-25, 25-16, 25-19. Valley Christian will travel to Heritage Christian High on Tuesday and entertain Maranatha High on Thursday.