ELAC strikes late to beat Mesa



East L.A. College's Preston Oliver cuts back to pick up some of his 157 yards rushing he had in the Huskies' 21-6 victory over San Diego Mesa. (Photo by Mario Villegas)

By WAVE STAFF



Story Updated: Oct 17, 2011 at 12:01 PM PDT )



Preston Oliver and Carlos Arredondo scored fourth-quarter touchdowns to lift East L.A. College to a 21-6 victory over San Diego Mesa Saturday in a Mountain Conference football opener.



The Huskies evened their record at 3-3 with the win. They host Mt. San Jacinto (3-3, 1-0) at 6 p.m. Saturday. Mt. San Jacinto defeated San Bernardino Valley, 43-28 in its conference opener.

Leading 7-6, the Huskies got an 11-yard scoring run from Preston Oliver with 10:57 remaining and Arredondo added a 29-yard TD reception from Aaron Cantu to ensure the victory.

Oliver, a freshman running back from Marshall High School, rushed for a game-leading 157 yards on 14 carries. He gained 140 yards in the second half. Arredondo, a sophomore wide receiver from Schurr, had a game-high eight receptions for 110 yards.

Cantu, also from Schurr, delivered another impressive performance by completing 24 of 32 passes for 226 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

The Huskies took a 7-6 lead in the second quarter on Cantu’s 24-yard pass to Carlos Portillo (Marshall) with 4:47 left. The score capped a nine-play 65-yard drive.

Mesa’s McCall Penn kicked field goals of 36 and 39 yards in the first and second quarters to account for the Olympians’ only scoring. With the loss, Mesa dropped to 1-5.

Clinging to a 7-6 lead late in the third quarter, the Huskies went on an 80-yard drive that took 13 plays.

Oliver did much of the work by rushing for 45 yards on six attempts. Other key plays included receptions by Arredondo of 16 and 12 yards and a 12-yard reception by Luther Walker. Cantu added a 12-yard run.

Oliver started the Huskies’ next possession by ripping off a 28-yard gain. Four plays later, Cantu connected with Arredondo on the 29-yard score. Oliver added a two-point conversion.

The Huskies’ ground attack was also bolstered by running back Marquel Booker with 24 yards on four carries. Justin Forte had 13 yards on six attempts.

The Huskies’ defense recorded five sacks. Cornerback Tyrone Moore recorded a team-best nine total tackles and had a sack. Joel Green (Jefferson) had eight total tackles and a fumble recovery. Linebacker Justin Munoz (Jefferson) was in on eight total tackles and had a sack and tackle Christopher Floyd made eight total tackles and two sacks. Lanny Delgado (Garfield) had six tackles and tackle Brad Sanchez made five. Defensive end Michael Frias (Montebello) also had a sack.


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