THE BIG GAME / MIRA MESA-POINT LOMA : Loser Likely to Leave City Eastern Picture

It’s only the first week of league play, but it’s already rush hour in the City Eastern League. Three teams are in a bottleneck jockeying to take the lead, and one will give ground today when the annual Point Loma-Mira Mesa rivalry resumes at Point Loma (3 p.m.).

Both teams are undefeated--Mira Mesa is 5-0, Point Loma 4-0--as is Morse (5-0).

Morse, ranked No. 1 in the county, plays at 2-A Kearny tonight and is favored to win. For Mira Mesa, ranked No. 2, or Point Loma, No. 3, a victory today is a prerequisite for winning the league title.

Last year, Point Loma pulled out a 27-24 victory when quarterback Danny White converted on fourth-and-10 to sustain a scoring drive late in the fourth quarter.

White is gone, and so too is most of the offense at Point Loma. The Pointers have scored only 60 points, averaging 15 per game. But their defense has recorded two shutouts (against Lincoln and El Camino) and allowed only seven points each to No. 4 Helix and No. 5 Rancho Buena Vista.

“So far, our defense has out-shown our offense,” Point Loma Coach Bennie Edens said. “We have good speed (on defense), we hit hard and have some outstanding football players.”

Two stand out. They are defensive ends and brothers, LaRoi (6-feet-2, 265 pounds) and Darcel Glover (6-2, 220). They are the reason teams can’t run against the Point Loma defense.

Today, the Pointers will attempt to stop the two-pronged attack of Wayne Pittman (71 carries, 884 yards) and Robby Edwards (52 carries, 493 yards).

And despite his team’s success against the run, Edens said he remains concerned with these two, especially Pittman.

“He’s a Division I running back,” Edens said. “If you’re going to stop him, you better play good defense, have strong pursuit and a lot of people in the area.”

But if Pittman breaks through for even one touchdown, it could put the game out of reach for Point Loma. That’s because Point Loma’s young offense will continue its learning process against the No. 1-ranked defense in the county. Mira Mesa has allowed only 10 points in five games and recorded three shutouts.

The rub against Mira Mesa is that it has yet to play a ranked team. Until today.