LA CAÑADA FLINTRIDGE — Somehow, Sarmen Bakhshi figured he had to be a hero.
He just needed to find a way to do it quickly. Luckily for the Glendale High football team, he did so with some last-minute dramatics.
Bakhshi caught a 50-yard touchdown pass with 1:15 remaining in the fourth quarter to propel Glendale to a 36-21 nonleague road victory against La Cañada on Friday night.
The senior running back caught a 10-yard screen pass from quarterback Moises Chavez and then broke past a stunned La Cañada defense to give Glendale a 23-21 lead. Senior linebacker Jean Khajarian sealed the victory with a pair of touchdowns off La Cañada turnovers in the final 64 seconds.
“I knew I had to go out there and do something,” said Bakhshi, who caught three passes for 67 yards to help the Nitros improve to 2-0. “One play was all we needed, but you know that every play can be your last.
“I caught the ball, saw an opening and ran. I ran for my life.”
La Cañada (0-2) had taken a 21-17 lead with 1:37 left when senior running back Nate Nitzkowski scored on a two-yard run. Glendale had no choice but to score on its next possession with a pair of timeouts remaining.
On the second play on the ensuing possession, Glendale found its chance for redemption on Bakhshi’s touchdown.
Glendale assistant coach Tim Todd said Bakhshi had the athletic skill to get by four La Cañada tacklers.
“It was a great play by Sarmen,” Todd said. “They sniffed it out with their defensive tackles and he made a great miss.”
Glendale, which battled La Cañada to a 21-21 tie last year at Moyse Field, gave the Spartans some life by being sloppy. La Cañada recovered a fumble after the ball popped out of Chavez’s right hand with 4:46 left.
The Spartans couldn’t take advantage of the miscue, but received another opportunity on a botched snap at the Glendale five-yard line. On fourth down, Nitzkowski scored to put the Spartans ahead.
Glendale forced five turnovers, raising their season total to nine. Senior linebacker Arturo Garcia had a pair of interceptions and senior defensive back Joey Miranda had one.
The Nitros, who opened their season Sept. 12 with a 44-28 nonleague home win against Alhambra, took a 3-0 lead on a 21-yard field goal by Jon Saucedo with 4:29 left in the first quarter to cap a seven-play drive.
After Glendale built a 7-3 halftime lead, Miranda ran the second-half kickoff 85 yards to give the Nitros a 9-7 advantage.
The Nitros extended the lead to 17-7 when wide receiver Charles Crosby caught a seven-yard pass from Chavez in the back of the endzone with 8:07 left in the third.
