Gladiator Tackle Report – Quarterfinals!

This past weekend four of the five Gladiator tackle teams participated in the opening quarterfinal round of playoffs. All four teams were victorious and will now advance next weekend to the semifinal round.

Gremlins

La Cañada 14, Pico Rivera Dons 0

On Sunday morning at Charter Oak High School in Covina, the Gremlins topped the Pico Rivera Dons 14-0 in a tight defensive battle. The Gladiators took an early 8-0 lead in the first quarter and extended the lead in the second following a blocked punt inside the Dons’ five-yard line. The Gladiator offense was efficient in the first half, putting together several long, time-consuming drives.

But it was the Gladiator defense that stood out in this contest as the Dons offense never got on track. Marked by hard tackling the Dons’ running backs were swarmed by Gladiator tacklers. In the first half, the Dons managed only two first downs. In the second-half of the game the Dons could not move the ball at all.

Next up for the Gremlins is a rematch from the first game of the season with the tough Rosemead Rebels on Sunday morning at District Field in Covina.

Jr. Pee Wee

La Cañada 14, Bell Gardens Lancers 0

On Saturday afternoon at District Field in Covina the Jr. Pee Wee team won a tough battle against the Bell Gardens Lancers 14-0. In the first half, it was all defense as neither team could move the ball, although the Gladiators did not help their cause with several key drive-killing penalties. This continued into the second quarter, but with five minutes left the Gladiators marched downfield, converted two fourth downs, and moved inside the Lancers’ 10-yard line with less than 30 seconds to play. Key to the drive was a superb diving catch by Mike Wallace at the Lancers’ 21-yard line. On fourth down with time running out, quarterback Jacob Calnon audibled at the line and hit a wide-open Nevada Miller in the end zone for the first score. Brooklyn Pasten added the two-point conversion kick to put the Gladiators up 8-0 at the half.

The third quarter began with total defensive domination by the Gladiators. In the second half, the Lancers did not get a single first down, and much of the reminder of the game was played in Bell Gardens end of the field.  The field position advantage reaped benefits as midway through the quarter a Lancer punt was blocked by Calnon and the Gladiators recovered inside the Bell Garden’s 10-yard line. Two plays later Calnon passed to Wallace for the second touchdown of the game. Any hope of a miracle comeback was dashed when Trent Carey recovered the ensuing kickoff and the Gladiators ran out most of the clock.

Next up for the Gladiators is a tough match against the top-seeded Covina Vikings at Covina District Field on Sunday afternoon.

Pee Wee

La Cañada 44, Duarte Hawks 12

On Sunday afternoon at Muir High School in Pasadena the La Cañada Gladiators defeated the Duarte Hawks 44-12 and will move on to the quarterfinal round of playoffs.

The Gladiators opened the game by returning the kickoff 80 yards to the Duarte 20-yard line. The offense consistently moved the ball with its ground and air attack behind their offensive line, which included Marcus Buenabenta, Tyler Sparks, William Broberg and Sean Escobar who all dominated the line of scrimmage. Quarterback Alec Sanchez-Nigolian played with poise and precision as he and his receivers, Colin Matthews and Mycha Pasten, facilitated more than four drives down the field on the day. The Gladiators punished the opponent with the physical running attack of James Warner, Jaden Keshishian, and Victor Guiragossian gaining over 100 yards for the game.

The Gladiator defense was disciplined and dominant allowing only a handful of plays to gain positive yards. The secondary of Pasten and Remi Valdez caused multiple turnovers and broke up many pass attempts. Up front the line backers and defensive line, including Colin Mathews, Olson Matthias William Aivazian, Christopher Aivazian, Justin Webster, CJ Owens, Michael Bailian, Anthony Sanchez and Jaden Keshishian, regularly got to the Hawks’ quarterback and stopped the running backs in the backfield. This Gladiator team has worked extremely hard this season and they are witnessing that their hard work paid off!

The Gladiators next play the Whittier Redskins in a quarterfinal match on Saturday at Bell Gardens High School.

Jr. Midgets

La Cañada 24, Covina Vikings 0

The La Cañada Gladiators Jr. Midget team’s season continued in familiar form with a 24-0 win in a quarterfinal playoff against the Covina Vikings at Mountain View High School on Saturday afternoon.

The Gladiator ground game was effective all afternoon as Robby Barreras, Brandon Shepherd, Sebastian De Leon, Jake Fitzgerald and center Charlie Stewart owned the line of scrimmage for all four quarters. Starting the game on offense, the game plan relied on simple but effective runs between the tackles. The drive was capped with a Markel Wallace six-yard score making it 6-0.

Covina’s first possession ended with a blocked punt on fourth down by Sebastian De Leon who also recovered on the Viking’s 12-yard line. After a Gladiator interception, Covina gave the ball back on a quarterback fumble. Wallace made the Vikings pay with a short three-yard score increasing the Gladiator lead to 12-0 at the end of the first quarter.

The Vikings’ opening drive of the second quarter was punctuated by a quarterback sack by Marcus Powe and a blocked punt recovered on the Gladiator 26-yard line by Daylon Beasley. Both teams settled down for the rest of the half though the Gladiators had still not allowed a Covina first down all day.

The second half began with a pair of sacks by Gladiators Powe and Fitzgerald. Following a quick turnover on downs, Markel Wallace sprinted up the middle for a 42-yard touchdown run bringing the score to 18-0 with 6:46 in the quarter. The remainder of the third saw Matthew Watson contribute a key quarterback sack and an Andrew Scarsi interception on the Covina 35-yard line.

The fierce La Cañada defense continued to hold tight during the final quarter highlighted by quarterback sacks courtesy of Fitzgerald and De Leon as well as a saving tackle on fourth down by Patrick Weinmann. Powe’s tackle for loss set up a turnover on downs by Covina which led to the final Gladiator series of the game featuring solid running from backs Tony Guerrero, Wallace and Beasley. Beasley concluded the Gladiator scoring with a 36-yard touchdown making the score 24-0 with 2:34 left in the contest. The final drive by the Vikings was stifled by Weinmann’s leaping interception.

Next up for the Gladiators in the semifinal round is the undefeated Pico Rivera Dons on Sunday afternoon at the District Field in Covina.

Midgets

La Canada 40, Whittier Redskins 12

No Report Received.

Please call (818) 248-1800 if you have any questions.

Thanks

Kevin Lacey, President