Just before the City Division I quarterfinal soccer game between hosts Eagle Rock and Dorsey was set to begin in pouring rain Monday afternoon, referee Patrick Riley ruled that the middle of the grass field was unsafe.
City Section Commissioner Vicki Lagos was present and quickly arranged for the competition, scheduled to begin at 4 p.m., to be moved to an alternative location, which turned out to be the Contreras Training Complex, seven and a half miles from downtown Los Angeles. When all was said and done, Dorsey advanced to the semifinals after a dominant 26-0 performance.
“When the umpires ruled the course unplayable, we immediately called Sotomayor and Contreras because they have turf fields and are closest to Eagle Rock,” Lagos said. “We had to organize a bus and we are grateful to the officials – it was the same team that was going to play the game on Friday. If we could not find a room, [today] then we would have to play the game tomorrow.”
The game was scheduled to take place Friday night along with a full slate of city section competition, but was postponed until Monday afternoon after a transformer failure left the school without power.
Dorsey wide receiver Stafon Johnson runs with the ball during the city's Division I playoff win over Eagle Rock on Monday night.
(Craig Weston)
“At 3:45 we were told we couldn't play,” said Dorsey coach Stafon Johnson, a Dorsey graduate who played for USC from 2006-09. My main concern at that point was that whichever team won would have a short shot at the next game.”
When the game finally started at 6:45 p.m., it was still pouring rain. Eleventh-seeded Dorsey controlled the tempo from the start, going 65 yards in five plays on the opening possession that ended with Mahkay McCluster's five-yard run.
Nathan Schibler fumbled on the second play of Eagle Rock's first possession, and defensive lineman Draysin Mixson recovered in place of Dorsey for the Eagles' 47th. Jamell Edmond capped the Dons' ensuing drive with an 11-yard strike, and Deuce Johnson caught a two-point pass to make it 14-0 late in the first quarter.
“We were ready to get down and dirty,” Dorsey quarterback Elijah McDaniel said after rushing for 120 yards and completing all four of his team's scoring attempts. “We wanted to play [at Eagle Rock]. We wanted to play even on Friday, but the longer we had to wait, the more time we had to prepare.”
Liam Pasten, one of City's best passers, completed just three of seven attempts for 22 yards in the first half and completed seven attempts for 24 for 53 yards. Even though the rain subsided in the second half, the third-ranked Eagles (8-4) were unable to get their offense going.
“I had 100% attendance at practice on Saturday in the rain,” Johnson said. “For the first time all year, we were fully loaded. This is Jamell's first game and he made a big impact. This team is averaging over 40 points a game, and we give them credit. We just wanted to play… we didn't care where it was.”
Edmond finished with 87 yards on 10 carries.
DeAnthony Young-Jones scored on a two-yard run to extend the lead to 20-0 late in the third quarter, and Jaziel Hernandez-Cruz capped the scoring with a one-yard run with 3:48 left in the fourth quarter. The 11th-seeded Dons (7-5) will be on the road again in the semifinals against No. 2 South Gate, a game that has been rescheduled for Saturday.
Eagle Rock players didn't get a chance to play one last time at Don Mengel Field. Construction is scheduled to begin in February on the school's new synthetic turf field, eight-lane rubber track and scoreboard.
