Cerritos’ McDonald is King for Day

Brian McDonald came into the Cerritos Pontiac GMC Strawberry Bowl as the “other” running back, but by the end of the game he was the one who got everybody’s attention.

McDonald scored on runs of 33 and 41 yards and rushed for 203 yards in 31 carries as Cerritos beat Santa Ana, 28-14, before a crowd of about 3,000.

McDonald, who played at Buena Park High, had 1,032 yards and was a first-team All-Mission Conference Northern Division selection, but his numbers were well behind those of Santa Ana’s Camron King.

King also had a solid game, rushing for 149 yards and a touchdown and catching three passes, including a 13-yarder for a touchdown. The co-player of the year in the Central Division finished his career as Santa Ana’s single-season (1,567 yards) and career (2,533) rushing leader.

“All I was expecting to get was 1,000 yards,” King said of his season. “The team didn’t let down [tonight]. It was just a couple of plays here and there.”

King and McDonald were named co-players of the game.

McDonald’s final big run put the game away with 7 minutes 32 seconds left in the fourth quarter. On a third-and-one play, McDonald took a handoff and slipped a tackle at the line of scrimmage. He burst outside and easily won the race to the end zone.

“First I wanted the first down,” McDonald said. “Then when I got outside, I saw the end zone and I took it there.

“When I get into the open field nobody is catching me. Not Carl Lewis, nobody.”

Santa Ana, which had won seven of eight coming into the game, pushed aside its usual conservative approach.

The Dons (7-4) tried seven trick plays, including four on which quarterback Grant Wagner handed off to a teammate, who then passed. But Santa Ana had little to show for it.

“Those are the kinds of things you can do for bowl games,” Santa Ana Coach Dave Ogas said. “You pull out all the stops. Believe me, we knew we could beat them without it, but this makes it more fun for the kids.”

Santa Ana twice had a receiver well behind the Cerritos defense, but the passes were underthrown.

Another of the trick pass plays--on a fake punt--went incomplete and helped set up Cerritos’ first touchdown, which came on McDonald’s 33-yard run early in the second quarter.

The score cut Santa Ana’s lead to 14-7, and the Falcons went 16 plays on the opening drive of the second half to tie the score when Charles Lewis scored from 11 yards out.

Lewis capped a nine-play drive with a four-yard touchdown run to give Cerritos a 21-14 lead with 14:50 to play.