“Who is this, arising like the dawn, as fair as the moon, as bright as the sun, as majestic as an army with billowing banners?” (Photo by D.L. Barker)
By Joe Torosian
(La Mirada)- Everyone hates to get nickeled & dimed to death, but you have to wonder how the Dominguez Dons feel about being Penney’d to a 19-7 loss to Norwalk and Rashaad Penny on Friday night at La Mirada High School in the second round of the CIF Southeast Division playoffs.
The Dons led 7-6 at the start of the fourth quarter thanks to quarterback Aaron Flemings 13-yard touchdown to open the second half.
Down a point with 10:38 to play and 77 yards to cover. Lancers HC Jesse Ceniceros moved Penny into a deep “I” and began tossing the ball to the talented back. Penny went 11-yards and then 4-yards on successive dives, before coming out after taking a shot to the “inner thigh”.
Christopher Walker spelled Penny for one play. Back in the traditional double-wing look, Walker, a sophomore, took the pitch from Jacob Carr and turned the left corner for a 32-yard gain to the Dominguez 30.
Penny was back in on the next play, Penny was gone 30-yards to paydirt after the snap.
The Dons were forced into a turnover on downs at midfield on their next possession. The Lancers then took the next five minutes off the clock moving from their own 48. Running 10 plays, Penny touched the ball on nine of them. Ran the ball on eight of them and caught one pass from Carr by out jumping a pair of Dominguez defenders for a 32-yard gain. Four plays later, he was in the end zone with 1:58 to play.
“I think he’s one of best athletes in the country,” said Ceniceros about Penny. “No, I’m not surprised anymore by what he does.”
In a game that went by faster than a vacation in Cancun, Dominguez-Norwalk kicked off a little after a 7:PM and the first quarter was over by 7:19, it came down to possessions and what you did with them.
The Lancers misplayed the opening kickoff and the Dons were in business at the Norwalk 13 to start things off, and they started with a fumble on their first play. Dominguez on its next possession would move from its own 30 but coughed it up at the Lancers one.
The teams traded punts before Norwalk scored on a halfback option. Matthew Ortega took the pitch, moved to his right and went deep to Penny who out raced the Dons secondary for a 36-yard touchdown. The extra point was blocked.
Down 6-0, Dominguez, on its fourth possession of the first half, used 11 plays to move the ball from its own 38 to the Lancers 10 before turning it over on downs with 50 seconds left to play before the break.
***Norwalk’s Penny rushed for 121 yards on 25 carries. He caught 5 passes for 114 yrds. Punted once for 59-yards. Made several tackles, led the band, drove the bus, and will most likely be named Mayor of the city by the end of the week.
***The Dons featured four different backs: Joshua Ford carried the ball 14 times for 59 yards but fumbled twice in the first quarter. Henry Williams 8 rushes for 38 yards. Keith Harrison 8 for 33 yards, and Domonique Lee 7 for 23 yards.
***Lancers quarterback Jacob Carr completed 4 of 5 passes for 78yds.
***Dons quarterback Aaron Fleming completed 1 of 4 passes for 33 yards. He rushed 8 times for 42 yards and a touchdown.
***Norwalk’s Matt Ortega carried the ball 7 times for 26 yards, and completed his one pass 36-yds to Penny for a touchdown.
***Dominguez had 8 possessions in the game. Three resulted in turnovers on downs. Two ended with fumbles. Two with punts. One with a touchdown.
***Norwalk had 8 possessions in the game. Three resulted in touchdowns. They turned the ball over twice on downs. Punted once. Ran out the clock at the end of both the second and fourth quarters.
***Dominguez tight end Lawrence Bryant had his team’s lone catch for 33 yards.
***Norwalk is 8-5 under Jesse Ceniceros in the post-season and this is its third trip to the semifinals since 2008, but the first since joining the Southeast Division in 2010.
***Dominguez started on the offensive line: LT: Felipe Rosa. LG: Francisco Mendoza. C: Tanner Luataua. RG: Ioane Niupulusu. RT: Kaluan Henry.
***Norwalk started on the offensive line: LT: Gabriel Silva. LG: Aaron Armendarez. C: Louie Hernandez. RG: Adam Gonzalez. RT: Rodrigo Sanchez.
Dominguez ends its season with an 8-4 record.
***Norwalk, now 12-0, will travel to Pasadena next Friday to play the Muir Mustangs who are 11-1.
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