Garfield Upsets Roosevelt, 16-13

After the Garfield and Roosevelt defenses dominated the first three quarters of the 64th East Los Angeles Classic on Friday night, the running games broke through in the fourth quarter.

Unfortunately for Roosevelt, Garfield’s running game broke through last. With 8:09 to play, quarterback Erik Nava scored from 31 yards out and then ran in the two-point conversion to provide the winning points in Garfield’s 16-13 victory before an estimated 24,000 in Weingart Stadium at East L.A. College.

Earlier in the quarter, Marco Castellon ran 41 yards to give Roosevelt a 13-8 lead with 10:33 to play.

A victory would have given Roosevelt, 7-3 overall and 4-1 in the Eastern League, the league title outright.

Garfield (2-8, 2-3) played for pride after forfeiting six victories for using an ineligible player.

Trailing at halftime, 7-2, Garfield took the lead in the third with some trickery. Facing a fourth and 16 from his own 46, Garfield Coach Ray Galarze had Nava lined up to punt, but he took the snap, put the ball away and ran straight up the middle.

Nava picked up 31 yards and, after a Roosevelt five-yard penalty, running back Henry Polanco ran off left tackle for the score and an 8-7 lead with 4:04 to play in the third. The two-point conversion was no good.

The defenses dominated the first half, with neither offense able to find the end zone until the final minute.

On a second and nine from the Garfield 10, Roosevelt running back Jorge Calderon found a hole in the right side of the offensive line and scored for a 7-2 Roughrider lead with 41.8 seconds remaining.

The game’s first score came courtesy of two great defensive plays.

First, Roughrider linebacker Ruben Burgueno intercepted a Nava pass just in the front of the goal line, getting tackled at the one with 6:25 to go in the first quarter.

On the next play, Roosevelt’s first from scrimmage, Garfield blitzed and Polanco, playing safety, brought down Daniel Ramirez for a safety with 6:21 to go.

The Bulldogs were penalized 15 yards before the opening kickoff because they did not take the field until 8:15, five minutes after the coin toss.