Despite Nine Penalties, Sunny Hills Rolls Along

BUENA PARK — Penalties didn’t kill Sunny Hills Friday night.

But the barrage of yellow flags against the Lancers during their 27-0 victory over Pomona in a first round Division VII playoff game at Buena Park High School left Sunny Hills Coach Tim Devaney concerned.

On numerous drives, Sunny Hills moved into scoring position only to back up again and again because of penalties. Holding. Motion. Procedure.

The nine flags against the Lancers were enough to make a coach wonder if his team was playing its first playoff game or its first game of the season.

“It’s frustrating to shoot yourself in the foot after moving the ball up and down the field,” Devaney said. “I hope we play better than this next week. We have to.”

Sunny Hills (9-1-1), the No. 1 seeded team in Division VII and the Freeway League champion, meets Kennedy in the second round next week at Kennedy. Kennedy defeated Inglewood Morningside, 38-13.

The Lancers looked like the top-seeded team in brief flashes, moving efficiently behind running backs Jeff Willis, James Tindukasiri and Jacob Cuccia. Willis finished with 96 yards in 14 carries, including 35 yards on Sunny Hills’ first possession, a 77-yard march culminated by Cuccia’s 15-yard touchdown run.

Sunny Hills’ first drive was indicative of how the Lancers would move the ball all evening--with long, time consuming drives. Pomona (4-7) didn’t have many opportunities to score, as Sunny Hills’ ball control allowed Pomona only seven possessions in the game.

But even though Sunny Hills dominated the line of scrimmage, the Lancers failed to avoid the penalties that prevented them from scoring more points.

“It’s disappointing to move the ball a good ways and then hurt yourself over and over with penalties,” Devaney said. “It’s not the first time we’ve hurt ourselves. That guy ‘penalties’ has been on our leading rushing list all year.”

The Lancers got a solid performance from No. 3 running back Tindukasiri, who scored two touchdowns and rushed for 66 yards in six carries. Eric Smith added two field goals for Sunny Hills, which also missed a scoring opportunity in the second quarter when Willis fumbled at the Pomona 4-yard line.