CERRITOS – Valley Christian of Cerritos used a flurry of points from late in the first half to midway through the third quarter to defeat visiting Kennedy, 45-7, on Friday night in a CIF-SS Division 9 first-round playoff game.
The Crusaders (9-2) held a 21-0 lead late in the first half that seemed more than enough against a struggling Fighting Irish (5-6) offense. A 24-point outburst over a 7:07 stretch of the game left no doubt.
The Crusaders pushed the lead to 28-0 with 1:37 left in the half on a 30-yard touchdown run by Gianni Hurd and a field goal as time expired in the half extended the lead more.
Hurd, who finished with 133 yards rushing added a 78-yard touchdown run early in the third. On the next possession, the Crusaders’ scoring was completed when junior quarterback Isaac Joseph scored on a 5-yard run, his third rushing TD of the night to go along with a TD pass.
Despite the lopsided score, the Fighting Irish defense did give the offense opportunities, as they forced three turnovers. The defense could not hold up against the high-scoring offense of the Crusaders, who started six drives inside Fighting Irish territory.
The Fighting Irish finally got on the scoreboard in the third quarter as quarterback Christian Rodriguez threw a 12-yard TD pass to Gabriel Solorzano on a fourth-down play. Alonzo Pineda led the Fighting Irish with 76 yards total offense.
