By Ron Vrooman
(Alhambra) – The Alhambra Moors found that even six days can make a huge difference, as they rebounded from their season-opening loss at South El Monte to beat Glendale, 35-8, last Thursday night.
The Moors committed no turnovers and effectively used a three-back rotation to rush for 203 yards and all five of their touchdowns.
Alhambra got solid performances from Cyrus Wu, who carried the ball 11 times for 50 yards and two TD’s, and Erick Baray, who rushed six times for 48 yards and a score.
But the biggest revelation of the night came from junior back Julian Venegas Khavari. In his varsity debut, Venegas Khavari displayed an impressive mix of power and speed as he gained 110 yards in 14 carries and scored two second-half touchdowns.
Quarterback Bryan Leonard provided balance to the Moors’ offense, completing 12 of 18 passes for 115 yards. Leonard stayed primarily with his short passing game, but hit wide receiver Joshua Soto with a 41-yard bomb to set up Alhambra’s third touchdown shortly before halftime.
The Moors led, 21-0 at the break and extended their margin to 28-0 after Venegas Khavari scored on a 6-yard run midway through the third quarter. Venegas Khavari also gave Alhambra its final touchdown on a 49-yard burst off left tackle with less than a minute to play.
The Moors’ run defense continued its stingy ways, allowing the visiting Nitros to rush for only 55 yards.
Two Glendale quarterbacks, Jonathan Wells and Isaac Quiroz, combined for just 112 passing yards and a pair of interceptions. Quiroz was the more successful of the two; he hit Justin Melville with a 10-yard touchdown pass and followed with a two-point conversion throw to Jayden Wilia to make the score 28-8 late in the third quarter.
Safety Giovanni Rodriguez and cornerback Threy Ragland each came up with an interception that set up an Alhambra touchdown.
The Moors (1-1) will visit the Temple City Rams (1-0) this Thursday night. The Rams overwhelmed Mark Keppel, 54-0, in their opening game last week.
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