DOWNEY - Last time San Pedro High football had to start behind the 8-ball for any season was 1995, which was a 16-7 loss to Hawthorne.

Starting off the 2015 season with a 13-2 loss to host Downey in an intersectional game leaves the Pirates with a lot of question marks, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. San Pedro senior quarterback Jacob Miller was intercepted twice, and lost a costly fumble in the fourth quarter after being sacked from behind. Meanwhile, the Pirates also were stopped three more times on downs inside the Downey ten-yard line.

The biggest plus for San Pedro (0-1) was that the defense was stout all night.

Senior middle linebacker Danny Tanielu had six tackles including a sack, while senior safety Antonio 'A.J.' Frazier Jr. was all over the place, with four tackles, three pass breakups and two vicious hits. Also performing well defensively was junior linebacker Nick Zabatta and two pass deflections by junior defensive back Mikey Hernandez Jr. Sophomore linebacker Corey Fausto forced a safety for San Pedro's only two points with 1:06 left in the game.

On the offensive side of the ball, sophomore running back Kai Kaneshiro was the top rusher with 44 yards on 11 carries, while Miller was 7-of-18 for 85 yards and two interceptions. Hernandez Jr. caught three passes for 50 yards.

The Vikings (1-0) scored the game's first points when Michael Cabrera intercepted Miller on a well-covered pass and took it 51 yards for a touchdown, and a 7-0 lead with 39 seconds left before halftime, as the defenses of both teams dominated the first half. San Pedro forced three punts in the first quarter, including two straight three-and-outs to start the game, also holding them on downs twice, with a 23-yard missed field goal in the first quarter as well.

Neither team scored in the third quarter, but the Pirates took the opening possession of the second half down to Downey's four-yard line, but gained -3 yards on the next two plays for a turnover on downs, ending the drive with 6:07 remaining in the third quarter.

Downey put the game away with 5:20 left in the fourth quarter, scoring on two plays after Miller's lost fumble to take a 13-0 advantage, but the Pirates didn't quit.

San Pedro drove the ball down to the Downey three-yard line, but Zabatta dropped the snap and lost two yards for another turnover on downs. Then Fausto forced the safety that Downey intentionally took, but San Pedro then drove to the Downey four-yard line, but Miller only gained three yards on a scramble as time expired, a microcosm of how the entire game went for the Pirates' offense.

With this humbling early defeat, the Pirates will look to bounce back on Thursday for their 2015 home opener against Roosevelt of Los Angeles, a 51-34 winner over Fairfax in their debut game. It's a CIF-Los Angeles City Section Division I first round rematch, where the Pirates won, 28-7.