On a roll, South Pasadena High’s football team picked up its second straight win Friday night, handing visiting Crescenta Valley a 29-23 loss in the midst of an excessive heat wave across Southern California.
With the victory, the Tigers improved to 2-1 on the season while Crescenta Valley is winless at 0-2.
The Tigers held a 7-0 lead after the first quarter, scored another touchdown in the second period, but the Falcons put 16 points on the board in the second, taking a 16-14 advantage at the half. South Pasadena came back scoring15 third quarter points and limited the Falcons to seven in the fourth to close it out.
“The team showed some toughness when we got behind with few mistakes by keeping their focus, adjustments and execution,” said SPHS head coach Jeff Chi. “Proud of how they came together when the team needed it the most.”
South Pasadena’s Trey Freking scored the Tigers’ first touchdown on a two-yard run with five minutes to go in the first period. The Falcons got on the board at the 8-minute mark of the second period, making it a 7-2 game on a safety.
La Crescenta scored again, going ahead not long after on a 50-yard scoring run, putting the visitors in front 9-7. Behind quarterback Andrew Nott, the Tigers quickly rallied on a 13-yard-TD pass to Jordan Rodgers, putting South Pasadena back ahead 14-9 with six minutes left in the second quarter. But the Falcons’ Xavier Thompson hauled in a 39-yard touchdown catch with four minutes before the break, giving La Crescenta the two-point cushion at the intermission.
South Pasadena took a 21-16 lead with three minutes on the clock in the third quarter as Freking scored for a second time on a 9-yard run. After La Crescenta turned the ball over the ball on downs, South Pasadena extended its lead to 29-16 with two minutes remaining in the third period on a 35-yard touchdown run by David Eisenberg, followed up by a two-point conversion, David Ortega getting the call in powering the three yards.
La Crescenta drew within six, 29-23 with three minutes left in the fourth period on a 15-yard scoring pass to Thompson, his second touchdown on the night, but the Tigers held the Falcons in check the rest of the way.
Among the big plays in the contest for South Pasadena was a key third quarter fumble recovery by the Tigers’ Jacob Scott and quarterback sack by Ortega, who plays both ways, getting little rest, lining up at linebacker on defense.
The all-purpose player was all over the field in this one. After bolting through on what appeared to be 60-yard touchdown by Ortega, the second half effort was called back on account of a penalty.
“Crescenta Valley gave us a tough battle, but our Tiger coaches and players made the necessary adjustments in the second half to pull off a win,” said South Pasadena Athletic Director CB Richards. “I’m proud of how our team handled the challenging conditions and came together when it mattered most in the fourth quarter. These tougher non-league opponents will make us better come league and playoffs in CIF. The team is starting to see how to win close games”
With both teams doing their best to temper the high temperature on the field, officials pushed for ample water breaks on the two sidelines. Tiger players were cooled down with cold mist sprayed on its bench.
Nott finished the night completing four of his five passes for 77 yards and one touchdown, Freking had 83 yards on the ground on 18 carries to go along with his pair of scores and James Dowd picked up 55 yards on two receptions.
On Thursday, Chi moved practice inside to the school’s gymnasium to avoid the sizzling outdoor conditions. At 3 p.m., ahead of Friday’s game, it was 108 degrees in the city, dropping to a blistering 89 by game time.
To help beat the heat this week, SPHS held nighttime practices and delayed the start of game against Crescenta Valley to 7:30 p.m., a half hour later that its usual start.
The Tigers opened the season on the road, getting shutout by Schurr 28-0 before picking up their first win last week, outscoring Arcadia 21-6.
South Pasadena is home for the third consecutive week on Friday, September 13, against Golden Valley, a team from Santa Clarita that comes to town with a 3-0 record after beating Westlake 19-14, Antelope Valley 41-6 and Lancaster 7-6.
The Tigers travel to Alhambra on September 20 for their final non-league game ahead of the Rio Hondo League campaign. Pasadena Poly comes to South Pasadena on October 4 before the Tigers play rival San Marino on the road October 11. The team is home to Monrovia and Temple City on October 17 and 25, respectively, and travels to La Canada November 1 to wind up the regular season.
