GARDENA - It may not have been pretty, but San Pedro High football was able to rest their starters for the majority of the second half as they defeated host Gardena, 42-7 in Marine League competition Thursday.

Little-used senior running back Esteban Garcia became a viable option as he ran for 83 yards on ten carries, and four touchdowns, scoring on his first three carries of the game, all in the second quarter on runs of 15, 16 and 5 yards to spark a 28-point second quarter run by the Pirates (8-1 overall, 3-1 league). Junior quarterback Jacob Miller completed 10-of-14 passes for 178 yards and a touchdown, all in the first half where San Pedro took a 35-0 halftime edge.

Garcia also scored on a 13-yard touchdown with 10:09 left in the fourth quarter and nearly scored a fifth being stopped two yards short on the game's final play after gaining 14 yards.

Gardena (0-9, 0-4) was able to score their first touchdown in nearly a month, when senior quarterback Jonathan Reed found senior athlete Michael Thompson on a screen pass, then Thompson eluded tackles for a 62-yard touchdown on the second play of the third quarter, but that was against the second string defense, as San Pedro rested their starters in the second half.

However, when the reserves continued to give up some yards, San Pedro coach Mike Walsh immediately sicced his defensive starters back in the game midway through the third quarter, and the Panthers would never threaten again.

Senior running back Chris Alvidrez didn't carry the ball much, but he did rush for his 16th touchdown of the season on a 13-yard run with 7:37 remaining in the first quarter for a 7-0 San Pedro lead. Miller completed all three of his passes on the opening drive. 

The last drive of the first half ended with Miller completing his final three passes, a 35-yard bomb to senior wide receiver Anthony Bolden, a 45-yard strike to junior tight end Mike Spinosa who would have scored if he didn't lose footing on the uneven terrain at Panther Stadium, and then finally a ten-yard strike to senior wide receiver Anton Srsen for a touchdown that gave San Pedro the 35-0 advantage with 1:35 left in the second quarter.

Defensively, the Pirates were aggressive in getting after Reed, as senior defensive end Theo Niles registered three sacks. Spinosa had a couple of sacks, while junior RB/DE Donte Huddleston and senior OL/DL Dominic O'Brien also were able to get a sack.

Reed was also intercepted twice in the second quarter by San Pedro sophomore WR/DB Mikey Hernandez.

San Pedro has one final test on next Friday, as they will host Carson in the Marine League season finale.