Los Alamitos Uses Air, Ground Forces to Rout Western

Always armed with a potent passing attack, Los Alamitos complemented that with its new running game and rolled up 523 yards of offense on its way to a 48-13 nonleague victory over Western Friday night at Western High.

Quarterback Zach Blazek completed 17 of 24 passes for 279 yards and a touchdown and also scored on an 11-yard run for the Griffins (4-0), ranked fifth in the county. One favorite target was Ryan Godfrey, who caught 10 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown.

Four different Los Alamitos running backs scored touchdowns and combined for 177 yards rushing against Western (1-3).

Although the Pioneers pulled to within, 17-13, with 4 minutes 40 seconds remaining in the second quarter, the Griffins scored 17 points in the next 10 minutes.

Los Alamitos (4-0), which scored on its first six possessions, didn’t show many ill effects from losing its No. 1 running back, junior Josiah Doby.

Doby broke his right wrist last week against Loara and is likely lost for the season, Los Alamitos Coach John Barnes said. So Barnes turned to his new committee of ballcarriers Friday.

The brightest prospect was junior Adolph Keyes, who gained 78 yards in five carries. In his first three carries, he gained 22 yards, scored on a 32-yard run, and added a 21-yard run.

“His speed is unbelievable,” Barnes said. “But he got a little dinged up, so that’s why he didn’t run in the second half.”

So Pat Larsen carried the load in the second half, gaining 66 yards in 12 carries, his last a nine-yard touchdown run to close out the scoring.

When the Griffins were in short-yardage situations, Barnes went to some big backs. Bernard Riley, 6-feet-3, 308 pounds, scored on a one-yard run with 1:05 remaining in the second quarter to increase Los Alamitos’ lead to 24-13. Chris Garnto, a 6-2, 235-pound linebacker, scored on a two-yard run early in the fourth quarter to blow it open, 41-13.

Western stayed close early with junior Trevell Jackson leading the way. He gained 216 yards in 22 carries, 136 coming in the second half, and scored on a 12-yard run to pull Western even, 7-7, with two minutes left in the first quarter.