Thomas Runs for 247 yards in Santiago’s Victory

GARDEN GROVE — James Thomas rushed for 247 yards and four touchdowns to lead Santiago to a 56-13 victory over La Quinta in a Garden Grove League game Friday at Garden Grove High.

Thomas piled up the yardage in just 15 carries. He rushed for 149 yards and three touchdowns in the first half.

The Cavaliers (3-6-1, 2-3-1) had 390 yards in rushing as they dominated the Aztecs (0-10, 0-6), who finish the season without a league win for the second straight season.

Santiago took a 7-0 lead on their first possession when Thomas broke through the right side of the line and raced 56 yards for the score with nine minutes 31 seconds left in the first quarter.

Santiago made it 13-0 when Kalola Leauasoga hit Vincent Maciel alone over the middle with a 24-yard touchdown pass. Thomas ran in the two-point conversion to make it 15-0 with 11:55 left in the first half.

Thomas added a 57-yard touchdown run up the left side with eight minutes left in the half to give Santiago a 22-0 lead.

The Cavaliers broke the game wide open in the third quarter, scoring four more times. Thomas had touchdown runs of 43 and 23 yards in the quarter as Santiago took a 50-0 lead. The Cavaliers also scored in the third on a 19-yard pass from Leauasoga to Maciel and a 17-yard pass from Ben Tran to Brandon Le.

La Quinta finally got on the board with 8:42 left in the game when Luis Saavedra ran it in from a yard out. The Aztecs added another touchdown on a 15-yard pass from Jimmy McLaughlin to Ben Fredrickson with nine seconds left in the game.