Page 4 August 25, 2016 Leuzinger Seeks Pioneer Title Article and Photo by Joe Snyder Last season, the Leuzinger High School football team enjoyed its most successful season in several years with a 5-5 overall record and finishing third in the Pioneer League with a 3-2 mark. Unfortunately for the Olympians, it was not good enough to advance to the CIF-Southern Section Western Division playoffs with six leagues and 16 berths. That meant that some of the third place teams, one of them Leuzinger, were left out. The Olympians, along with one of their crosstown rivals Hawthorne, did not get chosen to the playoffs. This year, however, things could change with Leuzinger, under third year head coach Damion Porter, will not be just a playoff contender but even a strong contender for a Pioneer League title. In fact with the new CIF-Southern Section playoff format where it will go by the success level of the individual high school rather than the traditional leagues, the Olympians will be placed in Division X and could have a shot at their first Southern Section crown since winning the Desert Mountain Conference championship in 1985. The Olympians will be in a division that includes Bay League teams Peninsula and Inglewood, Pioneer foe Torrance, along with Ojai Nordhoff and Templeton from San Luis Obispo County. Leuzinger returns 13 starters, seven on offense and six on defense. In addition to their experience, the Olympians also received first team all-CIF Los Angeles City Section Division II quarterback Kaymen Cureton from Los Angeles High. As a junior in the 2015 season, Cureton passed for 3,787 yards and 30 touchdowns. He was intercepted nine times. Cureton also rushed for 775 yards and four TD’s. He was a key to leading the Romans to a 13-1-1 record that included making the L.A. City Section Division II finals where they lost to Fairfax High School. “He looks awesome,” Porter said of Cureton. “He has 14 NCAA Division I scholarship offers.” According to Porter, only one PAC-12 Hawthorne quarterback Marte Mapu is a key returning starter on its football team. The Cougars begin the 2016 season at home against La Canada Friday at 7 p.m. school, University of Colorado, has recruited him as he has mostly expressed interest from conferences since the Mountain West. Cureton is also strong academically as he carries a 3.4 grade point average with mostly advanced placement courses. Cureton will have a key returning wide receiver to throw to in junior Andre Hunt. Last year, Hunt caught 23 passes for 664 yards and nine touchdowns. Another top receiver is senior Tariq Culpepper and junior Malcolm Jackson. Other top offensive starters for the Olympians include six-foot-three, 320-pound senior guard Alberto Perez, senior guard George Linares and junior tackle Kevin Oliva. On defense, Leuzinger will be led by brothers Andre and Antonio Hunt, who will lead the secondary. The Olympians also return senior defensive end D’Anthony Jones. “I think we got a bunch of guys who are really good,” Porter said. “We do have to replace a couple of linemen.” Leuzinger will have a challenging nonleague schedule that begins Friday at home against Moore League power Lakewood. The Olympians, then, visit always tough El Segundo on Sept. 2, before traveling to Mission League school Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks for a 7:30 p.m. game on Sept. 9. Other non-league games will be against rivals Lawndale (Sept. 16 at home) and Hawthorne (Sept. 23 on the road). Leuzinger starts league at South Torrance on Oct. 7. All games, except for against Notre Dame, begin at 7 p.m. Porter feels the Olympians will battle West Torrance for the league title. Despite losing premiere player Mique Juarez, who graduated on to UCLA, North Torrance should also be a top contender. Leuzinger hosts North on Oct. 14 and West on Oct. 28, that should give the Olympians an outstanding chance at their first league crown since 2000. Hawthorne Seeks Improvement Last season, Hawthorne High’s football team narrowly missed the CIF-Southern Section Western Division playoffs with a team consisting of mostly juniors. This year, the Cougars will have more experience that could give them a shot at their first CIF-Southern Section playoff berth since 2004. Hawthorne returns a very good passing combination in seniors, quarterback Marte Mapu and wide receiver Carlos Jacobo. Also back for the Cougars, who ended their season at 3-7 overall but 3-2 in the Ocean League, include wide receivers Justin Powers and Eric Homes, along with running back Carlos Reyes. Hawthorne’s line will be led by six-foot, 320-pound guard Jayven Tuna. The Cougars begin their season at home against La Canada Friday at 7 p.m. Hawthorne opens the Ocean League at Beverly Hills on Oct. 7 at the same time. Inglewood Opens Season After losing a popular head coach in Jason Miller and being replaced by James Sims, Inglewood High’s football team suffered a large loss of top players who opted to transfer out; many of them following Miller to his new high school football team at Dominguez High in Compton. With a very young and inexperienced squad that included several freshmen and sophomores that saw the Sentinels finish at 1-9; their only win by forfeit against Peninsula, which suspended their varsity football squad due to lack of players, they struggled throughout the whole 2015 season. This year, Inglewood has more experience and hopes it can compete in the tough Bay League. The Sents return eight starters on offense, behind twin brothers, running back Teyshawn White and tight end Keyshawn White. It could be a family affair on defense, behind brothers Michael Yates at end and Montray Yates at tackle. Another brother combination is Teyshawn White at safety and Keyshawn White at defensive end. Inglewood is faced with Coleman Stadium being renovated and will start its season at Los Angeles Southwest College against L.A. 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