BY JORGE RAMOS

PASADENA — Three-hundred and sixty-four days later the Mayfair high school football team finally found some closure. After Mayfair was eliminated at this same point last season, the Monsoons punched their ticket to the CIF Southern Section Division 7 championship game on Friday night.

A 3-yard touchdown run by Mayfair junior running back CJ Johnson early in the fourth quarter sealed the Monsoons’ 31-14 win over host Muir (9-4), ending the Mustangs’ bid for back-to-back championships after winning the Division 10 title last year.

“It’s an awesome feeling. There were a lot kids that were there that night and we set out not to let that happen again,” Mayfair head coach Derek Bedell said of overcoming last season’s semifinal exit.

Johnson, who finished with two touchdowns, and senior running back Ryan Heredia, carried the bulk of the offensive load for Mayfair (10-3). It will be on the road in the final against El Dorado on Friday or Saturday.

Johnson and Heredia combined for 180 yards on the ground balancing out the Monsoons’ potent passing game.

“There’s a lot of guys on offense … (Johnson) and (Heredia) did an unbelievable job tonight running the football,” Bedell said. “On offense there were a whole bunch of guys who touched the football tonight.”

The Mayfair duo of quarterback Jeremiah Calvin and Chaz Gilbreath combined twice for 78 yards and a touchdown in the first half.

Calvin threw for 163 yards on 7-of-16 passing,  two touchdowns and one interception.

Muir’s inconsistency in moving the ball proved costly as the Monsoons outgained the Mustangs 358 yards to 234 yards. The Mustangs especially struggled in the first half where they mustered 84 yards of total offense. The Mustangs relied on its defense to keep the game within striking distance.

After Mayfair forced three straight 3-and-outs to start the game, the Monsoons raced out to a 10-0 lead courtesy of a Calvin 28-yard touchdown pass and a 35-yard field goal. When it looked as if the Monsoons were about to capitalize on a third short-field opportunity, a Calvin pass tipped up by Gillbreath fell into the hands of Muir defensive back Alexander Miller.

Miller ran it back nearly 80 yards before his touchdown was nullified by a holding penalty. Six plays later, Muir running back CJ Bozeman cut the lead to three points, 10-7, with a 3-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter.

Muir head coach Lance Mitchell said his team’s struggles to move the ball and put together drives came down to ill-time penalties, stemming from his team’s youth up front. Despite the lackluster offensive output in the first half, Bozeman’s seven-yard touchdown run early in the second half cut the lead to 17-14, and kept the Mustangs within striking distance for most of the third quarter.

“I’m happy about the (effort), but I don’t expect anything different,” Muir head football coach Lance Mitchell said. “I’m excited about the experience they all gained, but we have work to do. I’m looking at next year and who’s gonna be ready to show up.”

John’s two second-half touchdowns sealed Muir’s fate, keeping the Mustangs from making a repeat run to the championship game.

BY DONALD MORRISON

CULVER CITY – A second half surge propelled La Serna High into another CIF-Southern Section championship game as the Lancers pulled away from Culver City 52-31 on Friday night in the Division 4 football semifinals.

La Serna (10-3) will face Corona del Mar next week at its home field at California High School either Friday or Saturday. Corona del Mar defeated Yorba Linda 28-14 in the other semifinal.

This is La Serna’s second trip to a CIF championship game in the past four full seasons. La Serna lost a heartbreaker 42-41 to Pacifica in 2019 in Division 6.

La Serna’s second half scoring blitz was led by its usually potent rushing attack. Owen Long ran for 155 yards on 13 carries. He also added two touchdowns in the second half. Adrian Castro barreled for 89 yards rushing on 13 carries. He also scored two touchdowns.

Quarterback CJ Ceron only threw the ball 10 times. He completed five passes for 113 yards and two long touchdowns.

La Serna led 21-17 at halftime but outscored Culver City 31-14 in the second half. The Lancers put all the pressure on Culver City quickly in the third quarter. La Serna started the half with some trickery on the kickoff. Jayden Northrup received the kick and faked a handoff to Kaimana Tufaga. Northrup hid the ball and slowly ran toward the left side, fooling the Centaurs. He then ran 51 yards which set up a first down for La Serna at the Culver City 44. La Serna scored seven plays later to take a 28-17 lead when Ceron kept the ball on a 9-yard touchdown run.

The Lancers’ defense came up big on the next series. Aiden Flores intercepted a Sammy Silvia pass at the Culver City 5 and returned it to the 1-yard line. Long then plunged into the end zone to give La Serna a 35-17 lead with 7:54 left in the third.

Culver City cut the La Serna lead to 38-24 early in the fourth quarter but La Serna answered on its next series when Castro rumbled into the end zone from 1 yard out to put La Serna up 45-24 with 8:42 remaining in the game. His touchdown was set up by a 52-yard run from Long.

Long scored his second touchdown with 1:47 left in the game when he ran 9 yards to put La Serna up 52-31.

The Centaurs were led by Silvia who completed 24 of 47 passes for 403 yards. He threw four touchdowns but was also intercepted twice. Culver City receiver Myles Singleton caught 9 passes for 165 yards and one touchdown.

Culver City jumped out on top of La Serna to start the game. The Centaurs wasted little time marching down the field thanks to their formidable passing attack led by Silvia. Culver City needed only 2:59 to march 76 yards in 10 plays to grab a 7-0 lead when Silvia found Gianni Haynes for a 9-yard touchdown pass. Haynes was wide open in the middle of the field and practically walked into the end zone from just a few yards out.

La Serna tied it at 7 about three minutes later when Adrian Castro took a handoff and rumbled for a  17-yard touchdown on the left side.

The Lancers looked poised to take the lead later in the first quarter but Owen Long fumbled at the 19 with Pierce Reynoso recovering. Culver City then found the end zone on the very  next play when Silvia hit a wide open Haynes over the middle for an 81-yard touchdown that gave the Centaurs a 14-7 lead.

La Serna tied it 14-14 with 10:36 to go in the second quarter thanks to an efficient 6-play, 65-yard drive. It was capped when Ceron, who was under heavy pressure, found Jayden Northrup open on the left sideline for a 24-yard touchdown pass.

[related_articles location=”left” show_article_date=”false” article_type=”automatic-primary-section”]After Culver City’s Henry Brownlow hit a 38-yard field goal in the middle of the quarter, the Lancers took their first lead. Ceron dropped back and faced pressure again from Culver City. He somehow found Jackson De Lange on the left sideline. De Lange made one defender miss a tackle then found daylight on along the left sideline as he cruised to a 63-yard touchdown that gave La Serna a 21-17 lead.

Culver City has one last chance before halftime to score. The Centaurs moved the ball down to the La Serna 10 with just five seconds left. Culver City called timeout and send Brownlow out to try the 27-yard field goal from the right hashmark. However, Brownlow’s kick was wide.

Read it: Leaving Las Vegas changed the fortunes for Davon Booth and El Monte High School’s football team

Read it: Thursday’s football previews, Bonita football hoping to rebound against Colony and Sierra Vista hoping to remain undefeated visiting Nogales

Read it: Bishop Amat finally cracks CIF football polls; Glendora wins, then drops after six weeks of being No. 1

Read it: This week’s high school football top twenty football rankings

Read it: This week’s high school football statistical leaders

Read it: Find out what a Glendora student did to win the hearts of many at Friday’s game against Bonita.

Read it: Read Aram’s rising and falling stock and most to gain, lose in this week’s column

Friday’s stories

Read it: Bishop Amat football edges Alemany behind Damien Moore

Read it: Glendora wins battle of unbeatens by pulling away late to beat Bonita

Read it: La Serna dominates El Rancho in Del Rio opener

Read it: Muir football shuts down Burroughs

Read it: San Dimas notches big upset over Northview in league opener

Read it: Damien’s turnovers costly in loss to Upland in Baseline opener

Read it: El Monte’s Davon Booth and Abel Cueva run wild in win over Rosemead

Thursday’s story

Read it: La Mirada leaves football field with ‘crazy’ good victory over Cathedral

Friday’s scores

ALMONT LEAGUE

Alhambra 69, Schurr 27

Montebello 22, Bell Gardens 15

BASELINE LEAGUE

Upland 21, Damien 3

Etiwanda 33, Los Osos 29

Rancho Cucamonga 42, Chino Hills 28

DEL REY LEAGUE

St. Anthony 36, Harvard-Westlake 22

St. Paul 35, La Salle 0

DEL RIO LEAGUE

La Serna 49, El Rancho 7

California 10, Santa Fe 6

FREEWAY LEAGUE

La Habra 56, Buena Park 8

Sunny Hills 45, Sonora 7

Fullerton 28, Troy 21

HACIENDA LEAGUE

Diamond Ranch 48, Walnut 0

South Hills 28, Charter Oak 7

MIRAMONTE LEAGUE

Ganesha 49, Garey 32

MISSION LEAGUE

Bishop Amat 25, Bishop Alemany 24

Loyola 24, Gardena Serra 7

Chaminade 35, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame 14

MISSION VALLEY LEAGUE

Arroyo 43, Mountain View 6

El Monte 59, Rosemead 24

MONTVIEW LEAGUE

Sierra Vista 57, Azusa 12

Duarte 37, Nogales 34

MT. BALDY LEAGUE

Chaffey 46, Don Lugo 12

Diamond Bar 49, Montclair 13

Ontario 28, Chino 27

PACIFIC LEAGUE

Crescenta Valley 45, Burbank 14

Muir 35, Burbank Burroughs 6

PALOMARES LEAGUE

Ayala 41, Claremont 14

Colony 40, Alta Loma 7

Glendora 28, Bonita 13

RIO HONDO LEAGUE

Monrovia 35, San Marino 0

La Canada 56, Temple City 42

VALLE VISTA LEAGUE

Covina 47, Wilson 44

Rowland 40, Baldwin Park 30

San Dimas 27, Northview 13

NONLEAGUE

Rio Hondo Prep 46, Big Bear 6

St. Francis 33, Mayfair 0

South Pasadena 34, Pasadena Poly 20

Thursday’s scores

Hacienda League

Los Altos 49, West Covina 7

Pacific League

Arcadia 46, Glendora 7

Nonleague

La Mirada 21, Cathedral 17

Claremont Webb 48, Southlands Christian 6

Read it: As Bonita prepares for Friday’s showdown with Glendora, its hearts are with assistant coach John Langilotti, who was diagnosed with cancer

Thursday’s preview: Los Altos football hopes to take first step toward a Hacienda League title hosting West Covina

Friday’s Featured Games Preview: Friday’s Featured High School Football Games: El Rancho hopes to prove it can tame La Serna

Read it: Bishop Amat in for a wild ride as Mission League play begins

Read it: Muir hopes to take big step toward the playoffs on the road at Burroughs

Friday’s story

Read it: Bonita football remains undefeated with an easy win over Covina

Read it: Valley Christian hands La Salle its first loss

Read it: St. Paul football delivers victory over Los Alamitos

Read it: Yorba Linda stumbles at times, but holds off La Mirada

Read it: Andrew Henriquez leads La Serna football past Warren

Thursday’s story

Read it: Pasadena football’s playoff chances take serious hit with second straight league loss

Friday’s scores

Ayala 26, Brea Olinda 15

Capistrano Valley Christian 62, Keppel 13

Yorba Linda 28, La Mirada 23

Loara 22, La Puente 20

St. Paul 14, Los Alamitos 7

Mission Viejo 38, Upland 3

Whittier 70, Westminster 17

Arcadia 41, Compton Centennial 9

Monrovia 33, Arroyo 7

El Rancho 40, Barstow 7

South Pasadena 41, Bassett 0

Bonita 50, Covina 0

Don Lugo 21, California 8

Cantwell-Sacred Heart 22, Salesian 18

Cerritos Valley Christian 15, La Salle 14

Claremont 43, Montclair 29

Sierra Vista 68, Garey 0

St. Francis 56, Harvard-Westlake 7

Chino 21, Hesperia 14

La Serna 50, Warren 6

Rancho Christian 15, Maranatha 3

Rowland 52, Nogales 27

Ontario 50, Azusa 21

La Canada 43, Pioneer 21

San Dimas 55, Pomona 14

Newport Harbor 48, San Marino 7

Leuzinger 14, Santa Fe 0

Silver Valley 26, Southlands Christian 0

Ganesha 65, Whittier Christian 41

PACIFIC LEAGUE

Crescenta Valley 42, Burbank Burroughs 19

Muir 2, Glendale 0 (forfeit)

Cuyama Valley 36, Blair 6

Thursday’s scores

Pacific League

Burbank 39, Pasadena 21

Nonleague

Cornerstone Christian 34, Bosco Tech 13

Wilson 49, Workman 13

Friday’s Stories

Read it: Glendora pulls away to roll past Charter Oak for Mayor’s Trophy. RB Xzavier Ford rushes for 221 yards and three TDs

Read it: Los Altos rallies in second half to beat Monrovia, stays unbeaten.

Read it: JSerra’s strong first half enough to beat Bishop Amat

Read it: Defense leads Mission Viejo past La Habra in public-school showdown

Read it: Muir shows a lot of grit in loss to powerful Grace Brethren

Read it: El Monte’s Davon Booth does it all in win over San Marino

Read it: Narbonne football runs away from St. Paul

Read it: Ayala holds off Diamond Ranch

Read it: St. Francis gets big stop in overtime to outlast Damien

Read it: South Hills no match in trip to San Juan Hills

Read it: St. Margaret’s topples La Mirada with a strong finish

Thursday’s Stories

Read it: Whittier rallies to beat San Dimas while Cal beats El Dorado and Montebello falls to Crescenta Valley

Read it: Sonora rolls to win as Lynwood endures another learning experience

Friday’s Scores

JSerra 38, Bishop Amat 14

Whittier Christian 25, Cantwell-Sacred Heart 21

St. Margaret’s 30, La Mirada 22

Mission Viejo 23, La Habra 6

San Juan Hills 42, South Hills 7

Adelanto 42, Bassett 7

Alhambra 41, Temple City 0

Ganesha 31, Azusa 8

Pasadena Poly 42, Campbell Hall 13

Chino Hills 40, Corona 0

Claremont 48, Diamond Bar 14

Ayala 21, Diamond Ranch 14

El Monte 20, San Marino 7

Glendora 31, Charter Oak 6

Grace Brethren 38, Muir 18

Duarte 49, Keppel 21

La Salle 38, Santa Paula 35

La Serna 56, Arcadia 6

Los Altos 34, Monrovia 14

Montclair 25, Wilson 17

Northview 48, West Covina 7

Pasadena 77, Pioneer 0

Lakewood 33, Pomona 14

Bonita 37, Riverside Poly 0

Rowland 28, Walnut 7

Arroyo 42, Schurr 27

South Pasadena 13, Eastside 6

St. Francis 28, Damien 21

Maranatha 34, Verbum Dei 0

La Canada 35, Viewpoint 6

Gabrielino 29, San Diego Southwest 20

El Rancho 35, Garfield 34

Narbonne 56, St. Paul 19

Thursday’s Scores

California 22, El Dorado 16, OT

Crescenta Valley 56, Montebello 21

Sonora 27 Lynwood 6

Whittier 35 San Dimas 26

Bishop Amat coach Steve Hagerty following 17-0 win over Diamond Ranch pic.twitter.com/kDW6FsZKvZ

— Fred J. Robledo (@SGVNSports) August 23, 2019

This page is dedicated to sharing all of our high school football coverage from the opening weekend of high school football for the Pasadena Star-News, Whittier Daily News and San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

This page is dedicated to sharing all of our high school football coverage from the opening weekend of high school football for the Pasadena Star-News, Whittier Daily News and San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

Friday Night:

Read it: Charter Oak coach Lou Farrar missed his first game in more than five decades while at the City of Hope in Duarte battling cancer. His team responded with a 42-3 victory.

Read it: Glendora spoiled the debut of Damien coach Matt Bechtel with an impressive performance.

Read it: Nobody knew for sure what to expect from Muir, but it showed why it’s a Division 11 contender with an impressive opening night.

Read it: California makes it look easy in rout of Schurr

Read it: Monrovia takes over in second half to beat West Covina

Read it: Fullerton’s Arthur Shaw too much for Santa Fe in opener

Read it: Bonita’s young quarterback Sean Jastrab throws five TDs in debut

Read it: Sierra Vista rallies in second half to beat Gabrielino

Thursday Night … 

Read it: Bishop Amat running back Damien Moore had a big night, but why did the Lancers struggle with Diamond Ranch?

Read it: La Habra wasn’t ranked in the preseason Division 3 rankings, but they looked mighty impressive going on the road and beating defending Division 2 champ Upland

Read it: Northview destroyed El Rancho a year ago, but had a much harder time beating them in Thursday’s opener. Find out why

Read it: La Mirada couldn’t of asked for a better showing in the return of coach Mike Moschetti by destroying El Toro.

Thursday’s final scores

Bishop Amat 17 Diamond Ranch 0

La Canada 17, Wilson 14

La Habra 21, Upland 14

La Mirada 38 El Toro 0

Northview 31 El Rancho 23

Pasadena Poly 42 Cathedral City 7

Sonora 23, Pomona 0

Cantwell-Sacred Heart 47, New Designs Watts 0

Friday’s Scores

Maranatha 34, Crean Lutheran 17

Fullerton 48, Santa Fe 7

Whittier Christian 25, Vasquez 7

Muir 26, Western 6

Tesoro 48, Whittier 6

Bonita 42, Arroyo 7

Baldwin Park 22, Nogales 0

Bassett 39, Artesia 22

Los Altos 49, Covina 6

Diamond Bar 34, Walnut 14

South Hills 28, Eisenhower 12

Rowland 35, Ganesha 14

Glendora 24, Damien 7

La Serna 49, Murrieta Mesa 19

Monrovia 28, West Covina 14

Charter Oak 42, San Marino 3

California 35, Schurr 0

Sierra Vista 14, Gabrielino 13

South Pasadena 53, Mountain View 13

La Puente 42, Workman 6

Southlands Christian 20, Edwards AFB Desert 14

Garfield 27, Montebello 6

Rosemead 42, Huntington Park 8

Rio Hondo Prep 37, Morro Bay 0

El Monte 63, Sotomayor 7

Pioneer 12, South East 6

St. Paul 42, Albany St. Mary’s 0

First up, Thursday night football. I’ve got Bishop amat, La Mirada, Northview and La Habra all winning, and Amat winning big. Think Damien Moore is going off tonight. Let’s go and have some fun. If you want to read tonight’s preview, click the link.

I’ll also join Aram Tolegian on his weekly podcast discussing everything high school football related, check it out.

Aram and Freddie back again! @SGVNSports joins Aram to talk about Bishop Amat being unranked by CIF and much more! https://t.co/f6sPBJDNSh

— Aram Tolegian (@ChemicalAT) August 19, 2019

Thursday’s Games at 7 p.m. (Picks in Parenthesis)
Diamond Ranch at Bishop Amat: (Amat)
El Rancho vs. Northview at Covina District Field (Northview)
La Habra at Upland (La Habra)
El Toro at La Mirada (La Mirada)