Special Effort by Defense Leads Westlake Victory

There is no way to understand the grief linebacker Jordan Lampos of Westlake High has felt over the past five months.

On the morning of June 12, while driving home from a health club, Lampos got distracted and his car struck five bicyclists. One died and three others were seriously injured. Only Wednesday did a juvenile court judge decide Lampos would not have to go to jail.

So there he was Thursday night at Newbury Park High, making tackle after tackle in the Warriors’ 35-14 Marmonte League victory over the Panthers.

He doesn’t talk about how his life has changed, but he is using football as an emotional release.

“I just try to play hard,” Lampos said. “I’m just trying to have fun and not think about anything.”

Lampos had 10 tackles to lead a Westlake defense that shut out the Panthers (3-3, 2-1 in league play) for three quarters and surely would have done it for four quarters had the first-stringers stayed in.

The Warrior defense, directed by former Hawaii assistant Troy Thomas, is the main reason Westlake (5-1, 2-0) has a chance to challenge Arroyo Grande for Southern Section Division IV supremacy.

In the first half, Westlake’s defense could not have been more dominant. On each of Newbury Park’s first six possessions, the Panthers ran three plays then punted. Their only first down came with four seconds left in the half.

There was defensive ends Joe Lemma and Leo Reed charging in.

There was linebackers Lampos and Ben Lorier punishing tailback Marcus Crawford on every carry.

There was corner backs Ryan Foltz and Josh Golden giving no ground.

There was safeties Chris Catalano and Michael Brignac leaving no Panther receivers uncovered.

“[We] executed the game plan perfectly,” Thomas said. “We tried to make them throw the ball. I think our front seven was very motivated. We put a lot of pressure on our kids to meet the challenge and they did.”

Cameron Merrill, Newbury Park’s quarterback, completed 16 of 35 passes for 108 yards. Crawford, who came in only 182 yards short of 1,000, was limited to 79 yards in 26 carries.

Coach George Hurley of Newbury Park had a helpless feeling watching from the sideline. The Warriors’ defense overwhelmed Panther blockers.

“When you don’t block and tackle, you don’t win football games,” Hurley said. “We are still learning.”

The Warriors opened a 28-0 halftime lead on the strength of Zac Wasserman’s passing and Julian Lambert’s running. In the half, Wasserman completed eight of 17 passes for 149 yards, including touchdowns of 40 yards to Brignac and 17 yards to Catalano.

Wasserman finished completing 11 of 21 passes for 214 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions.

Lambert, coming back from a sprained ankle, rushed for 70 yards in 12 carries.

MORE COVERAGE

HART-STRING

Quarterback David Parker and Saugus High (4-1) will challenge Hart’s 38-game Foothill League winning streak tonight at College of the Canyons in Valencia. The Indians (5-0) have won eight consecutive league titles under Coach Mike Herrington.

HOOVER HANDLED

Lawrence Pruitt rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns in only four carries for Muir in a 56-6 Pacific League victory over Hoover. Aldo Marin scored on a three-yard run in the second quarter for Hoover (1-5), which trailed, 35-6, at halftime.

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