No revenge for Edison

For the second straight year, Orange Lutheran has had Edison’s number in the CIF Southern Section Pac-5 Division playoffs.

In the quarterfinal round of the playoffs played Friday, the fourth-seeded Lancers scored the first and last touchdowns of the game, and each proved critical as they held on to defeat the Chargers, 28-16.

A bam-bam-bam start to the game had a crowd of more than 8,000 at OCC in a frenzy and set the tone for a contest that wasn’t decided until late in the fourth quarter.

The two teams also met last year in the Pac-5 Division championship game, won by Orange Lutheran at the Home Depot Center in Carson.

This time around, it was Edison who had the upper hand after one quarter.

Edison surrendered a quick six points when Orange Lutheran sophomore Exavier Edwards returned the opening kickoff 98 yards for the opening score.

“You can’t give a team like Orange Lutheran the opening kickoff,” Edison Coach Dave White said. “They’re too explosive a team to give up seven points just like that.

“But I thought our kids played really well and we played evenly with them after that.”

After that quick kickoff strike by the Lancers, Edison scored the equalizing touchdown just moments later when on its fourth play from scrimmage, a screen pass from senior quarterback Nick Crissman to senior running back Areseo Lakey, turned into a 65-yard scoring play.

Edison then took its only lead when Wade Huston recovered a fumble on Orange Lutheran’s ensuing possession to set up a 17-yard TD pass from Crissman to sophomore Dylan Leener. That score gave the Chargers a 13-7 lead.

Orange Lutheran got rushing touchdowns from senior quarterback Blake Hyepock and Ricky Pemasa in the second quarter to take a 21-13 lead at the half.

Edison narrowed the lead to 21-16 when senior Nick Torres hit a 24-yard field goal in the third quarter, but the Lancers gained breathing room in the fourth quarter when Tyler Seneca scored on a one-yard run to make it 28-16.

Crissman completed 20 of 32 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns, and Lakey had 155 yards of total offense, in their final performances for the Chargers.

The Chargers, who shared the Sunset League championship with Esperanza, finishes the year 8-4.

Orange Lutheran, tri-champions from the Trinity League, improved to 10-1 and next plays top-seed Long Beach Poly in the division semifinals Friday at the Home Depot Center.

Edison’s senior class, 25 members strong on this year’s squad, ends its football career having won or shared the last three Sunset League titles and also won a league championship at the frosh/soph level.

“The seniors certainly left their mark,” White said. “Winning three titles at the varsity level and a frosh/soph title is as good as it gets. They won a lot of football games and had a lot of great stats individually, but what makes their accomplishments all the more impressive to me is how they played as a team. They have a lot to be proud of.”