MidValleySports.Com

Margarito Beltran addresses La Serna after their upset of La Mirada.

(Whittier) – La Serna never stopped believing while being down by 11-points to La Mirada and staged a comeback of monumental proportions with a 32-28 upset.

The Lancers appeared down and out as the Matadores began to show why NCAA Division I scouts were in attendance as they imposed their will late in the second half to gain control of the offensive line. Max Gama and Alex Munoz both scored touchdowns in the second half to give La Mirada a 28-17 lead with 6:42 remaining.

“I never felt like this team ever gave up,” said La Serna head coach Margarito Beltran. “They showed grit and determination. Two of our wins last year were last second wins, so this team believed.”

That is when Lancers quarterback Andrew Buenrostro went to work and found Conner Burke on a wheel-route for a 50-yard score that erased 40-seconds off the game clock.

With renewed life late in the game, La Serna’s smaller defensive line penetrated the Matadores offense and stopped Gama for no yardage and forced Shane Blood into two-hurried passes that allowed one last gasp.

Andrew Rosales would come up big for the Lancers on third and nine as Buenrostro found him open near the left sideline at the Lancers 39-yard line. Rosales had to extend his body in mid air for an acrobatic catch.

Facing a fourth and three with less than two minutes to play, Buenostro went back to pass and was sacked by Munoz. What looked like a La Mirada stand, turned into a 15-yard penalty for facemask on Munoz and set up the game-winning score.

With 1:38 remaining in the game, Richard Alvarez took the hand-off from Buenrostro cut the corner eluded two Matadores players to rumble 27-yards for the deciding touchdown.

Buenrostro closed the night 10 of 18 for 175 yards and two touchdowns.  Buenrostro’s main target all evening was Rosales with seven catches for 116 yards.

For La Mirada, Blood finished the night 10 of 17 for 164 yards and no touchdowns. Anthony Diaz was his go-to receiver with five catches for 116 yards.

The ground game for La Serna had the Matadores on their heels early on when they took control of the opening kick-off and marched 69 yards on 18 plays that ate-up 8 minutes and 59 seconds. The Lancers would settle on a Travis Guerra 32-yard field goal to open the scoring.

It took La Mirada a quarter and half to get into the end zone as Gama scored his first of three touchdowns on the ground. Gama finished with 104 yards rushing.

The teams would see-saw scores back and forth through the second quarter. Buenrostro found Rosales on a 55-yard play-action post route for a touchdown, 13 seconds after Gama’s score. Rosales was working on man-to-man coverage on the score that saw the Matadores blow their coverage assignment.

La Mirada answered right back with Gama scoring from 22-yards out to make the score 14-10. The Lancers closed out the scoring in the first half on Craig Jones two-yard rush.