DOWNEY – The Downey Razorback youth tackle football teams faced difficult opposition in the second round of the Pacific Coast Conference playoffs last Saturday and three out of five teams are in contention for the championship game in two weeks.

The MityMite Razorbacks upset Lakewood 13-12 in the quarterfinal game. Connor Freire ran 15 yards for the Hogs’ first score and Julian Velasquez added the PAT. Lakewood led at the half 12-7.

In the fourth quarter Velasquez scored on a 2-yard QB keeper for the winning score.

Downey’s defensive team, led by Joshua Williams, Justin Cardenas, Andrew Talavera, Daren Marquez, Richard Suastegui, Julian Arellano and Matthew Gomez, shut down Lakewood the remainder of the game to ensure the victory.

The MityMites will play No. 1 seeded Santa Monica at 9 a.m. at Banning High School in the semi-final game Saturday.

The Lakewood Junior PeeWees, last year’s champion MityMite team, shut out the Downey Junior PeeWees 20-0. The loss eliminated the Hogs from the playoffs.

The PeeWee Razorbacks advanced to the PCC semi-finals with a 6-0 victory over Gardena. The Hogs defense held Gardena twice in the first half with first and goal situations.

The D-line, led by Jesse Saenz, Sunny Gill, Anthony Campos, Fernando Vides, Manny Ramirez and Aaron Ramirez, held Gardena’s running game all afternoon. When the Mohicans tried to go to the air, outstanding plays by Jacob Diaz, Ian Sonico and Eddie Preciado did not allow a completion all day.

In the second half the Razorbacks’ offensive line comprised of Beto Lara, Anthony Campos, John Boik, Joaquin Guerrero and Drew Gonzales made it easy for the Hogs to take control. With 9:00 left in the game, the Hogs took over on their own 25-yard line and began a seven minute drive. Ramirez and Preciado got two first downs in a row and a 40-yard run by Kiefer Enslin led to first and goal. Two plays later Enslin scored the game winner.

The PeeWee Hogs will play Long Beach tomorrow at 1 p.m. at Downey High School.

The undefeated Downey Junior Midget Razorbacks (9-0) won their uarter final PCC playoff game at Serra High School by thrashing the Gardena Mohicans 42-0. The win propelled the Hogs into the semi-final game against the Santa Monica Vikings Saturday at 3 p.m. at Downey High School.

Downey’s wingbacks Justin Huff, Joshua Medina, Jelani Dozier-Jones and Miguel Esquitin and the Hog offensive line displayed a potent running attack which was no match for Gardena. Huff scored on a textbook double wing counter play of 35 yards in the first quarter to begin the scoring. Justin Commodore added the two point PAT.

In the second quarter, fine defensive plays by Jose Rosales Austin Espinosa, Joshua Palacios and Huff completely stifled the Mohicans. The Hog offense soon upped the tally with a 48-yard scamper by Huff.

When the Hog offense next took to the field, fullback Nicholas Luna had two nice runs to get the ball near midfield. Speedy Joshua Medina then tore off a 55 yard sweep to make the score 20-0. Quarterback Rafael Rodriguez’ toss to Anthony Menendez set up Medina’s second touchdown, a run of 20 yards, making the score 26-0 at the half.

The intermission had no effect on the Razorbacks. The defense, led by ends Jonathan Haik and Espinosa, did not let up. In the final quarter, Dozier-Jones’ interception set up what was the most spectacular play of the game, a 85-yard trap, in which Huff broke through a huge hole created by pulling guard Angel Luevanos, bowled over one defensive back at midfield, then outran the entire Gardena team.

The Downey Midgets encountered the No. 1 seed in the division in facing the Tri-City (Harbor City, San Pedro, and Lomita) team. The Hogs were no match for the undefeated Falcons and lost 34-6. The Loss eliminates the Razorback Midgets from the playoffs.

On Sunday the Downey cheerleading teams competed in their championships at the Pyramid in Long Beach. The MityMite cheerleaders (ages 7-9) placed third in the conference, the Junior Midgets also placed third, and the Midget cheer team came in second place in their division.

Downey Youth Football will be hosting a portion of the semifinal playoff games at Downey High School Saturday. The first kickoff is at 9 a.m.

**********

Published: November 20, 2009 - Volume 8 - Issue 31