Kennedy earns share of Empire crown

ANAHEIM Eli Tekurio appears at the bottom of the Kennedy numerical roster, but his Thursday numbers put him near the top of the Fighting Irish performers.

Tekurio caught a second-quarter touchdown pass, recovered a fumble and had one of three Kennedy interceptions as the Irish (6-3, 3-1) downed Valencia (6-2-1, 3-1), 20-0, at Western High.

Coupled with Pacifica’s victory, the Empire League finishes with a three-way tie for the top spot that will be resolved by coin flips today.

“That was our first goal, to win the league title,” Tekurio said. “Our next is win CIF again.”

Valencia was playing without two top offensive performers because of disciplinary reasons: running back Wes Fletcher and quarterback Marcus Beckman.

The Tigers finished with only 226 yards total offense. Kennedy totaled just 285 but took advantage of four Valencia turnovers, scoring 17 of their 20 points after takeaways.

Contact the writer: cmonahan@ocregister.com