El Segundo Threatens Rout, Then Holds on to Defeat Garey, 21-13

There was a point Thursday night when El Segundo High threatened to run Garey off the Mt. Antonio College football field.

But the rout never materialized and turned into a thriller, which was finally won by the Eagles, 21-13.

The El Segundo Eagles took a 14-point lead in the second quarter and drove nearly every time they touched the ball. But the Garey defense stiffened in the second half and El Segundo had to hold on for the victory.

The Eagles improved to 3-0 on the season while Garey of Pomona fell to 1-2.

El Segundo won largely on the strength of its running game, which, when it wasn’t cracking out big gains, was controlling the ball and the clock in the game’s waning moments.

Running back Erik Evans led the Eagles with 140 yards on 24 carries and caught one pass for 14 yards.

Defensive back Greg Brooks set the table for the Eagles’ first score when he intercepted quarterback Joe Keller’s pass and returned the ball to the Garey 34.

Evans broke off a 27-yard run on El Segundo’s first play from scrimmage but lost two yards on his next carry. A Garey penalty put the ball on the four and two plays later quarterback Matt Wise scored from two yards out. Evans’ extra point gave El Segundo a 7-0 lead.

An 18-yard pass from Wise to Garrett Quaintance and a Garey penalty gave the Eagles a first down on the Vikings’ 29 with the clock winding down in the first quarter. Don Smith carried 14 yards to open the second period and Evans took over from there, breaking off runs of five and 10 yards for the second El Segundo score.

Kelsey Nance took the kickoff and ran it 85 yards for an apparent Garey touchdown, but the Vikings were called for clipping and took over at the El Segundo 33. Five plays later Nance scored from three yards out and Keller’s extra point put Garey at 14-7.

Smith’s 33-yard kickoff return gave the Eagles good field position and El Segundo put together an 8-play, 46-yard drive that led to Evans’ 5-yard touchdown run.

Garey scored with 1:39 left in the game when Keith Hawkins scored from three yards out, but the extra point failed.

Evans carried 12 times for 100 yards in the first half.