In one of the largest football rivalries in the San Gabriel Valley, the 5-1 South Pasadena Tigers traveled a town over to take on the Titans, who came into the matchup 3-3. The Tigers coming into this game had only defeated the Titans once in the past thirteen years, being three years ago in their homecoming game. Seniors cheering the Titans on did not want to become the first graduating class since the Class of 2010 to not see their team have a winning record against South Pasadena. “I didn’t come in with high expectations, but I still hoped to see a miracle win like two years ago,” Jamie Bercaw, 12, said. Unfortunately for hopeful Titan students, Bercaw’s wishes did not come true.
In a game that felt significantly less close than the score indicated, South Pasadena secured the Crowley Cup with a 24-17 win after its two year stay on Huntington Drive. Despite the score being tied at ten at the half due to a pick six from Chase Mena, 10, the game felt very out of reach for the Titans. The offense struggled to move the ball down the field, with Brady Beck, 12, completing less than half of his passes. On the ground, the Titans totaled just seventeen yards in the rushing game. Star runningback Julian Solis, 12, only had nine yards on eight carries. If it weren’t for a 62 yard reception from Parker Wilson, 10, the Titan offense would have failed to score an offensive touchdown against the Tigers. “The game was disappointing since we had beaten them the past couple years, but I’m still looking forward to the rest of the season,” cheerleader Bailey Mena, 12, stated.
For the Titans, truly nothing positive came out of this game. They lost to the biggest rival they have, showed an abysmal running game, and now have to win out in order to qualify for CIF. With a pivotal game against an undefeated La Cañada team on the horizon this week, a win is paramount, as it would all but secure a top three finish in league play, with typical Rio Hondo League bottom feeders Polytechnic and Temple City due up to end the season. “We are just trying to put this game behind us, and move our focus to beating La Cañada,” said receiver Miles Morning, 11. If the Titans are to down the Spartans on the road, they are going to have to come out with an improved ground game and play elite defense in order to quell an offense that is averaging 33.6 points per game.
