South Bay, CA – The playoffs are here for high school football, it the time of year that Champions are Made. The Lawndale Cardinals took a loss to #1 Seed Calabasas Coyotes 33-7 in a tough battle. This would have been a later round match-up but due to a few CIFSS infractions this Quarterfinals game was a sight to see now. They players on both teams got to chance to impress Nebraska Defensive Coordinator Mark Banker look for talent.
The Coyotes started slow with little success in first quarter of play, it wasn’t till 2nd quarter that first touched scoreboard. They took lead for short second after missing the extra point and excite the visiting crowd. Lawndale responded behind QB Chris Murray drove team down field and capped it off with QB keeper for 7-6 lead. This was the only time the Cardinals held the lead during the game.
This Calabasas team had too many weapons for the short handed Cardinals who lost running back Zach Cooper in first half. So Murray had more weight to carry on already unstable legs from few hits slowing him down but still had enough to show he is the real deal. The trio of juniors had the field covered starting at QB Tristan Gebbia with targets of Darnay Holmes & Keyshawn Johnson jr. on the outsides who both made a bunch big catches and racked up good chunks of yardages. The standout Senior Nebraska commit Marquel Dismuke returned a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, caught an 18-yard touchdown pass and reeled in a pair of interceptions to move Calabasas to its first semifinal in 17 years.
Down the bay in City Section the Narbonne Gauchos were marching on to their quest for Championship run of their own. The Gauchos handled marine league foe San Pedro 55-24 for second time this year. This team has the #1 seed and coach Manuel Douglas has them performing like such.
The officials even took two touchdowns away from Narbonne but they wasn’t enough to slow down running back Sean Riley. Reaching the end zone this season has been a place where Riley has visited a lot. Just last week on one of his touchdown celebrations mimic WWE drop off the ropes when viral after uploading it to social media. He finished the game with 335 all-purpose yards and five touchdowns, including a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. The team has been playing great football all season and if they don’t reach the division 1 championship game it will be a big disappointment.
The South Bay will be represented well next week in City Section with Narbonne hosting Dorsey, then in other side Crenshaw at Arleta. In the Southern Section Palos Verdes with host Mira Costa, Redondo Union will travel to Calabasas. Surprisingly the Serra Cavaliers will not be moving on after 1 point defeat to Mater Dei.
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