In what has been an interesting year in the Rio Hondo League, one of the most interesting stories has been the Spartans of La Canada High School. After going 4-6 last season in a down year, they have bounced back, strong this year, starting 7-0 with wins over powerhouse Maranatha and their biggest rival, Crescenta Valley, a team that trounced on the Titans with a 27 point win. La Canada was full of confidence heading into a matchup that was pivotal for the CIF implications of both teams: A win for the Titans allowed them to live to fight another day, with two easier opponents in Temple City and Polytechnic upcoming. However, a Spartan victory meant the Titans were out, and would allow La Canada to clinch a CIF berth after missing last year. The game was stress-free, as it truly was never even close, with the Titans falling 46-14, ending their hopes for a third consecutive CIF trip.
The story of the game was told through how both teams performed on the ground. La Canada was able to get 247 total yards rushing, while San Marino only mustered a total of 17. The Spartans did more than fourteen times better on the ground than the Titans did, and though quarterback Brady Beck, 12, tried to make up for the lack of a run offense through the air, he was unable to complete that goal. He threw for two touchdowns and no interceptions, yet completed less than half of his passes. “It was disappointing to be sure,” JJ Wilson, 12, said. “It sucks knowing we won’t be playing in the playoffs as seniors, and that we only have two games left.”
In this game, there were really no true positives. The defense struggled, the offense only picked up two touchdowns, one of them being against the backups for the Spartans in the game’s final minutes, and to top it all off, the team was eliminated from playoff contention. “This was tough, but we just have to move on to end the season with two wins,” said Daniel Jeffries, 10. With two games left against the typical bottom feeders of the Rio Hondo League, the Titans will hope to end the season on a high note.
