A little too close for comfort would be the best way to describe Glendale College’s road victory over the East Los Angeles Huskies Saturday night. After an ongoing battle through the very last second of the fourth quarter, the Vaqueros managed to keep the Huskies on a tight leash and come out with a 33-28 win.

The Huskies gave the Vaqueros’ defense a workout, charging down the field on almost every possession they had.

The Vaqueros continued to put numbers up on the scoreboard, but failed to make the most of their extra points.

Slideshow Media credit: Richard Kontas

“Maybe we should work on our kicking team. We work on it in practice, we just made mistakes we shouldn’t make,” said Coach John Rome, whose team is 2-0 in non-league games.

The defense attempted to contain the Huskies’ offense but it had a few breakdowns. Defensive back Osa Aikhionbare managed to come up with a huge play late in the third quarter. The Huskies were at the Glendale 11-yard-line, when ELAC’s quarterback attempted a pass for the touchdown. Aikhionbare intercepted the ball and had a three-yard return. “It was just a big play, before that they had made a big play came down the field. I needed to make a big play for my team. [I] read the play, read the quarterback, took the ball away and ‘boom,’ got away with the W, that’s all we needed,” said Aikhionbare.

The Vaquero offense totaled 442 yards, with two rushing and three receiving touchdowns.
Jorge Chaidez led the Vaq’s offense with 28 carries for 190 yards and one touchdown. Willie Youngblood had 12 carries for 65 yards and one touchdown. Euedell Clayton had four catches for 79 yards and two touchdowns. Brian Williams had two catches for 40 yards and one touchdown.

“A victory is a victory,” said Rome after the close game. “But we need to get better.”
The Vaqueros hope to extend their winning streak this Saturday at Sartoris Field at 6 p.m. when they play against Riverside City College (1-1).