Edgar Melik-Stepanyan
The Crescenta Valley High football team could not have sent the
CIF Southern Section playoff seeding committee a louder message.
Facing the possibility of missing the Division III playoffs for
the first time since 1995, the Falcons played their best game of the
season at the most opportune time.
Behind three second-quarter touchdowns from Aaron McGuinness to
Nigel Orozco and 417 yards of total offense, CV defeated Pacific
League rival and host Arcadia, 49-28, on Friday.
CV's largest margin of victory against Arcadia since 1993
strengthened the Falcons' claim to the only at-large postseason
berth.
The Falcons (6-4, 3-2 in league) finished fourth in league behind
Arcadia, Muir and Pasadena.
"We've done everything we could [to make the playoffs]," CV Coach
Alan Eberhart said.
"But the reality is that we're still a fourth-place team.
"We came to prove that we could play football with a real good
football team."
Arcadia (9-1, 4-1 in league) entered its regular-season finale as
the third-ranked team in the division.
The Apaches certainly didn't look like a strong team.
The Falcons blew open what was supposed to be a tight contest in
the second quarter.
McGuinness, CV's senior quarterback, connected with Orozco for
three scores, giving the Falcons a 35-6 halftime lead.
Orozco finished with four catches for 115 yards. McGuinness was
15-of-27 passing for 312 yards.
Falcon senior receiver Sean-Paul Ceja, who had played second
fiddle to Orozco and Rusty Rivera for the majority of the season,
caught six passes for 148 yards.
"We've been holding back all year," McGuinness said. "If I was any
other team, I wouldn't want to face us."
CV amassed 315 yards of total offense in the first half, including
185 in the second quarter.
Arcadia had just 30 yards of total offense and only one first down
in the second quarter. Apache quarterback Brian Ziska and running
back Michael Howe both had sub-par games.
Ziska threw three interceptions -- two to Ceja, who leads the area
with five picks -- and passed for 231 yards. The senior threw for
just 29 yards in the first half. Howe scored twice and recorded 102
yards on the ground, but rushed for just 42 yards in 16 carries in
the first half.
