By Big Tony Solorzano
(Whittier) – La Serna’s opening week upset of presumed Del Rio League favorite Santa Fe turned out to be only a fluke as Pioneer’s Steven Del Villar picked apart the Lancer secondary with his passing en route to a 34-17 defeat Thursday night at Whittier District Field.
The Titans (3-4, 1-1) bounced back from their loss to El Rancho the previous week with a withering aerial attack by Del Villar, who completed 24 of 37 pass attempts for 285 yards and a touchdown in a game that was expected to vault the Lancers (2-5, 1-10), last year’s Del Rio runner up, into first place and an early command of the league.
Graig Jones had put the Lancers on the board early in the first quarter, scoring from a yard out with 8:01 left in the quarter, but the Titans answered with 17 straight points before the quarter was over. Anthony Bolanos tied the game on a 72-yard pass from Del Villar on the next possession, then took the lead on Gabriel Salazar’s 28-yeard field goal. Joseph Lara closed out the quarter with a 28 yard fumble recover for another score, giving the Titans a 17-7 lead at the end of the quarter.
In the second, La Serna’s ground game closed the gap and set up the score for the Lancers, Teren Guerra’s 37-yard field goal with 6:45 left in the half. On the ensuing series, Pioneer’s drive stalled out and Salazar, faking a punt, attempted to throw the ball and was called for Intentional grounding at the two yard line, allowing Lancers quarterback Andrew Buenrostro to score on a quarterback keeper with 4:57 left, tying the score.
But on the next series, Del Villar engineered a 74-yard drive that culminated in Eddie Aguirre’s seven-yard run giving the Titans the lead for good. Salazar closed out the half with another field goal, this one from 19 yards out, giving the Titans a 27-17 lead at the end of the half. Pioneer would score one more time, on another fumble recovery, this time by Reuben Robles, who picked up the fumble at mid field and went 52 yards the other way with 2:25 left in the third giving them the 34-17 lead, which they held until the end of the game.
Next week, Pioneer hosts Cal High in a game that could decide second place at the mid-point of League play, while the Lancers host Whittier at Whittier District Field.
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