By Steve Knez
BurbankNBeyond Staff Writer
Midget Green 48 Highland 6
Coming off a bye week, Midget Green showed no signs of rust with another dominant performance on Saturday against Highland at Burbank High School. When the dust finally settled, the Vikings remained undefeated at 4-0 with a 48-6 victory.
On the second play of the game, defensive end Michael Aguirre hit the quarterback at the point of release forcing an errant throw that was intercepted by Jake Moore and returned 51 yards to the 2-yard line. Manny Pimentel then rushed for the touchdown on the Vikings’ first offensive play. Pimentel ran for the 2-point conversion and the Vikings had a quick 8-0 lead.
From then on, it was déjà vu all over again. Highland was forced to punt after three downs and Dante Coxsom returned it 60 yards for a touchdown. On the next series, Highland was again forced to punt after three downs and Coxsom returned it 51 yards for the score. This time, Coxsom earned style points with some nice moves on his way to his ninth touchdown in four games.
Highland got on the scoreboard with a kickoff return for a touchdown but Sebastian Leal answered with a 49-yard touchdown run three plays later. The Vikings defense held strong again with another three and out series and the Vikings capitalized with a 26-yard touchdown run by quarterback Trystan Daggs. The Vikings led 34-6 at halftime.
During the first half, Pimentel, an offensive and defensive lineman, showed his versatility by kicking for the extra point in two of his four attempts.
The stellar Vikings defense, led by Aguirre, Max Cotton and Davy Stone, held Highland to just 19 total yards on the day. The defense has held their opponents to just 26 total points in four games this season.
Bantam Green 35 Valley Orange 6
Bantam Green needed only the first quarter to dominate Valley Orange and improve to 4-1 en route to a 35-6 victory at Burbank High School.
Tyrese Yussuf rushed for two touchdowns and had one long punt return for a touchdown in the first quarter. Mason Cotton added a 15-yard touchdown run and the Vikings led 28-0 at the end of the opening quarter. Bryce Whitaker finished the scoring for the Vikings with a QB run in the second quarter.
In typical fashion, the Vikings defense was overwhelming once again as defensive ends Robert Maliwanag and Calvin Laughlin shut down the passing game by continuously pressuring the quarterback. Valley Orange’s only completed passes landed in the arms of the defense as Yussuf intercepted one and Whitaker grabbed two picks. In five games, the Vikings defense has only allowed 38 total points.
Perhaps the biggest story of the game was the Vikings kickers going 5 for 5 in PAT attempts. Bronson O’Connor nailed four while Laughlin added one.
Pee Wee 20 West Valley 0
After opening the season with four straight road games, the Pee Wees finally got their chance to shine at home in a 20-0 victory over West Valley at Burbank High School. The shutout improves their record to 3-2.
Despite the shutout, it was the offensive line that stole the show as Anthony Torabyan and Christian Elizalde continuously opened holes and made key blocks for running back Aaron Vargas. He ran for more than 100 yards with the highlight of the day coming on a 65-yard touchdown run.
Quarterback Ian Gandara added a 30-yard touchdown run and later connected with Aidan Cox on a 44-yard touchdown pass.
Other scores:
(4-0) Senior Green 58 SC Apaches 0
N. Oxnard Red 38 Junior Black 12 (1-3)
SC Chiefs 48 Junior Green 24 (2-3)
Highland Eagles 52 Midget Black 6 (1-3)
(2-3) Bantam Black 18 Agoura White 6
Valley Black 49 Bantam White 6 (1-4)
Senior Gold – BYE
