Bell, defense key Burroughs football’s blowout of Pasadena

PASADENA — Through the first two Pacific League games, the Burroughs High football team has been dominant.

So too has been senior running back Chance Bell, who helped the Indians last season as they won the league championship and reached the CIF Southern Section Southeast Division quarterfinals.

Burroughs received another superb effort from Bell, who rushed for 180 yards and three touchdowns Friday to power the Indians to a lopsided 43-8 league road win against Pasadena.

Burroughs (3-2, 2-0 in league) will return home to play Arcadia at 7 p.m. Friday at Memorial Field.

On Friday, the Indians looked crisp on both sides of the line of scrimmage.

“I thought our defense played lights out,” said Burroughs first-year Coach Mike Reily, who saw defensive back Preston Hernandez intercept a pair of passes as the unit limited Pasadena to just 105 yards of offense. “I’m very happy with the way we’ve been playing defensively and it’s something we need to continue doing.

“Our guys are swarming to the ball and we make it a point to do that [each game]. Offensively, it’s a week-to-week thing, based on what kind of defense the other teams are playing. I’m happy with where we are.”

Burroughs took a 7-0 lead on a seven-yard run by the San Diego State University-bound Bell with 8:10 left in the first quarter.

Burroughs quarterback Hayden Zepeda then tossed a 27-yard touchdown pass to receiver Cerain Baker to extend the lead to 14-0 with 5:37 left in the first quarter.

Burroughs turned to its defense to help set up its next touchdown. Defensive back Ben Peters intercepted a pass at the Pasadena 41-yard line with 3:04 to go in the opening quarter. Zepeda scored on a one-yard run to give the Indians a 21-0 advantage with 11:13 remaining in the second quarter.

Pasadena (0-5, 0-2) trimmed the deficit to 21-8 on a two-yard run by running back Rahad Black with 4:36 left in the first half.

Burroughs responded with a 46-yard touchdown run down the left side by Bell, a reigning All-Area selection who scored six touchdowns against Hoover on Sept. 22. Bell’s tally made it 27-8 with 2:21 left in the second quarter.

Hernandez intercepted a pass at the Pasadena 35-yard line and returned it for a touchdown to make it 33-8 with 5:58 to go.

Bell completed his huge performance with a nine-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to 40-8 with 3:25 to play in the third quarter.

Zepeda completed 10 of 22 passes for 171 yards.

“We’re definitely a lot better on defense,” Bell said. “They’ve been doing a great job at getting to the ball.

“I think we have a more balanced offense and we are able to spread the ball more. It’s more dynamic.”

Burroughs wrapped up the scoring on a 39-yard field goal by Jonathan Rivas with 6:47 remaining in the fourth quarter.