Serra shuts out Valley Christian

Senior nose tackle Marcellus Eison was at the forefront of a relentless Serra rushing attack that held the Warriors to 145 forward yards and 118 total yards of offense. The Padres racked up four sacks, including two by Eison, who said Saturday’s defensive performance ranks as Serra’s best in his three varsity seasons.

“This is No. 1,” Eison said. “It was straight discipline. … We shut them out the entire game. I thought maybe they might slip in one but, no, we held them back.”

Both teams played evenly for one half to take a scoreless tie into halftime. But the Padres got enough production out of sophomore quarterback Dom Lampkin — who gained 160 total yards, more than all of Valley Christian’s total offense — in the first start of his varsity career.

Lampkin was thrust into action the previous week when Serra’s senor quarterback Daylin McLemore — arguably the WCAL Player of the Year through Week 7 — suffered a broken collarbone in the first half against Sacred Heart Cathedral.

The sophomore’s day didn’t start well. The game’s first play from scrimmage saw Serra, at its own 16-yard line, lose 10 yards when a sideways snap forced Lampkin to dive on a fumble for a 10-yard loss. Things picked up later in the day though, with Lampkin finishing with 13 carries for 94 yards, while going 9-of-13 passing for 66 yards and one interception.

“I don’t know if he ever settled in, really,” Serra head coach Patrick Walsh said. “I always knew he had a high level of confidence. … He made some mistakes today, and some poor decisions, but he also made some wonderful decisions. He made some really timely throws which is really, really impressive to see, particularly under duress and under pressure.”

But the Padres’ defense was so good, they even called on their strong safety to play offense for the day’s only touchdown when Jackson Lataimua pounded across for a 2-yard score to break the scoreless deadlock.

Serra totaled two interceptions on the day, including a pick by senior cornerback Damon Lewis to give the Padres some prime real estate at the Valley Christian 22-yard line. The Warriors actually held the line, stopping a third-down run for no gain — the Padres converted just 2 of 9 third-down tries on the day — but with Serra looking to attempt a 32-yard field goal on fourth-and-3, Valley Christian was flagged with an offside call, giving the Padres a new set of downs.

“These are two evenly contested teams,” Walsh said. “We’re probably going to see each other again at some point. … Sometimes it comes down to one play, one turnover, one mistake, one of those things. And that was very fortunate for us.”

Lampkin seized on the second life, dancing for an 8-yard gain to the 2. Then Lataimua emerged for his only carry in the game to give the Padres a 7-0 lead.

“More to come,” said Lataimua, who has scored a slew of TDs this year as Serra’s short-play power back.

Lataimua turned in a big play on Valley Christian’s ensuing possession. On second-and-15 from the Warriors’ 29, quarterback Cory Taylor was rushed by Serra defensive end Nusi Malani and hurried a throw downfield that was on the money, but Lataimua got to the spot to break it up.

“We were ready for a game like this,” Lataimua said. “We’ve been waiting all year. We knew it was going to be us and them since last year. … They gave us the key. All we needed to do is turn it on.”

Two plays later, the Warriors were forced to punt with less than two minutes remaining in the third quarter. Serra took over at its own 14, but got a big third-down conversion deep in its own territory when senior receiver Terence Loville got open on a 15-yard post pattern to move the sticks.

Junior running back Vince Poni then advanced 14 yards on a trap play. Lampkin added an 11-yard run, and sophomore running back Hassan Mahasin ran for gains of 11 and 6 yards to set up a 32-yard field goal attempt for Lewis. Earlier in the day, Lewis missed a first-quarter field goal try from 24 yards away. The senior made up for it this time, however, splitting the uprights to give the Padres a 10-0 lead.

Serra had a chance to put the game away when senior safety Nate Sanchez nabbed an interception with 6:42 to go at the Serra 10. But two minutes later, a botched handoff exchange saw the Padres fumble the ball away. Not that it seemed like a miscue with the way the Padres’ defense eagerly ran back onto the field

“It’s just another opportunity,” Eison said. “We’ve just got to do our job. It’s just straight business. If they’re going to go somewhere, we’ve got to rally to the ball. If it’s going to come to me, I’ve got to do my job and get the ball.”

Valley Christian (5-1, 8-1) tried to make the most of its last-gasp effort. Taylor quickly scrambled for 12 yards to the Serra 18, but got pushed back on the following play when Lataimua got in for a sack. Then on third-and-14, Taylor took a shot, but Loville at cornerback was on point in a 1-on-1 matchup to break up the attempt in the corner of the end zone.

The shutout marks the first time Valley Christian has been held scoreless since 2014, when the Warriors fell 27-0 to Los Gatos in a Central Coast Section Open Division consolation bracket matchup. The last time the Warriors were shut out in a regular-season game was in 2009, 21-0 to Mitty.

“They didn’t score and I never would have guessed that, that we could have shut out Valley Christian,” Walsh said. “But something special is happening here with this group of kids, something very unique and very special by the way they act. And that defensive performance was special and one that will be remembered.”

With the win, the Padres clinch no worse than a co-championship in the WCAL with one week to play. Serra has a chance to wrap up its second outright league title in three years this Saturday at St. Ignatius.