Drenched in sweat and tears, Diego Montes could finally gasp for air in the sweltering heat of the San Fernando Valley summer.

It wasn’t the high-90s heat that lingered through the three-plus hour City Section showdown Friday night that left the five-foot-11 senior quarterback of Granada Hills Kennedy emotional, burrowed into family members’ arms after the game ended. Montes had just surged into the end zone for a winning five-yard rushing touchdown — the last of a career-best seven-touchdown performance — in a 59-56 triumph over Eagle Rock and quarterback Liam Pasten.

If Friday served as a litmus test for the City Section squads, both vying for league titles (Eagle Rock in the Northern League and Kennedy in the Mission League), their quarterbacks more than met the challenge.

An hour be

See Full Page