HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS : Fairfax Corrals Lampkin in 28-15 Win Over Birmingham

Birmingham High fell victim Friday night to a recent phenomenon: the Fax machine.

Fairfax High, which bills itself as The ‘Fax, blocked two Birmingham punts and smothered the Braves’ offense in a 28-15 win in a City Section 3-A Division quarterfinal at Venice High.

The top-seeded Lions (11-0) will meet Poly, a 33-0 winner over Manual Arts, in next Friday’s semifinals.

“We gave away literally three scores,” Birmingham Coach Chick Epstein said. “This team took it to us with their quickness. We played them as tough as we could.”

It wasn’t tough enough.

The hard-charging Fairfax defense sacked Birmingham quarterback Vince Lampkin three times, intercepted two passes and limited Lampkin to two completions in 11 passes for two yards.

Lampkin scrambled for 73 yards in 16 carries. Birmingham (9-3) finished with 141 yards in offense.

Lamar Haywood’s third-quarter squib kickoff bounced off the face mask of Birmingham’s Sergio San Vincente and Haywood recovered at the Lions’ 46.

Eleven plays later, quarterback Rahim Muhammad sneaked for a three-yard touchdown and then passed to Mario Mattison for the two-point conversion, and Fairfax had expanded a five-point halftime lead to 21-8.

On the next series, a Lampkin pass was intercepted by Milo Bynum, who returned the ball to the Birmingham 12. Lee Brothers scored three plays later on a one-yard run for a 28-8 Fairfax lead.

Birmingham scored a fourth-quarter touchdown on Darrel Moore’s five-yard run.

Lampkin completed just one of seven passes for six yards in the first half and was held to 12 yards in seven carries.

Birmingham got a break when Mattison fumbled at his three on the game’s opening drive and Edwin Mirto recovered for for the Braves.

But Fairfax scored on its next possession after Marlon Cooper blocked a Lampkin punt and the Lions recovered at the Birmingham five. On the next play, Muhammad tossed a five-yard touchdown pass to Bynum.

The Birmingham defense generated the Braves’ first-half score when it forced Muhammad to fumble in the second quarter. Birmingham’s Eric Williams recovered at the Lions’ six but was hit from behind and fumbled forward into the end zone, where Adam Kallen recovered the ball for a touchdown.

Mattison led all rushers with 111 yards in 20 carries.