PALOS VERDES ESTATES >> The rulers of the Bay League appeared to meet their match.

Palos Verdes, winner of 12 of the last 13 league titles, was staring at a seven-point deficit nearing the midway point of the fourth quarter Friday afternoon and at the risk of dropping its first two league contests. Leuzinger running back Journee Tonga was in line to make that a reality.

Some timely defense and the fourth-quarter heroics of Sea Kings quarterback Ryan Rakowski and a pair of wide receivers showed that they aren’t ready to surrender the crown quite so easily.

Rakowski tossed a pair of touchdown passes over the final 6 minutes, 40 seconds — including the game-winner with 17 seconds left — to lead Palos Verdes to a 21-14 thriller over Leuzinger.

“He’s amazing,” Sea Kings receiver Morley Boyd, who had the game-tying touchdown catch, said of Rakowski. “He gets us fired up, he gets us in the right mindset and he obviously can throw the football.”

Tied 14-14 with 2:54 remaining, the Sea Kings (3-4, 1-1) withstood the Olympians’ efforts to feed Tonga, who had 24 of his game-high 263 yards rushing on the drive.

Leuzinger (5-2, 0-2) committed a false start to push the ball back to the Palos Verdes 45-yard line and a Sea Kings sack from a host of defenders forced a fourth-and-9 at the 43.

Olympians quarterback Russell Sekona then misfired over the middle to turn the ball over on downs with 29 seconds left.

All Rakowski needed was one play, connecting on a 57-yard touchdown to receiver Evan Aguirre, to pull in front.

“I had pressure to the left so I rolled right and I saw Evan coming across the field and he made a great catch,” Rakowski said.

Aguirre played just as important of a role on Rakowski’s game-tying touchdown to Boyd.

After Boyd made the first defender miss, Aguirre delivered a key block downfield at the end of the 37-yard score with 6:40 to play.

“That’s just how we play. It’s selflessness,” Aguirre said. “That’s what our whole program is built on.”

Added Boyd: “I wouldn’t have scored without the block. … I made a move and Evan made a great block.”

Sea Kings defensive back Jace Demoss closed out the win with a sack as time expired. Nick Yakubik also had a key interception in the end zone on the opening drive of the second half.

“(The defense) gave us a lot of opportunities,” Rakowski said. “Unfortunately, we didn’t convert on some of them but the one that we needed most we converted on. Huge props to them because we were in the game because of them.”

Palos Verdes avoided back-to-back league losses for the first time since losing three consecutive in 2009.

“We did some things that weren’t great, but we kept playing hard,” Sea Kings coach Guy Gardner said. “It wasn’t a perfect football game, but it was a good football game between two high school teams fighting hard.”

Rakowski, who was 9-of-18 passing for 145 yards to go with 71 yards rushing, adjusted to a swarming Leuzinger pass rush that constantly applied pressure despite playing without injured junior linebacker Samu Moala.

“It’s kind of like what (Rakowski) does,” Gardner said. “If the pocket isn’t clean — and that happened a good amount today — he’s good on his legs, and I think one of the things that makes him a tough player to play against is his eyes are downfield.”

The result spoiled a relentless effort from Tonga, who had 187 yards rushing through three quarters.

The teams went into halftime tied 7-7 after the first 24 minutes were littered with penalties.

Palos Verdes was significantly hampered more, with four drives continually pushed back.

Still, the Sea Kings had a chance to take a lead into the break. Just beyond midfield, running back Dominik Hernando executed a fake punt and raced for 23 yards before fumbling at the Leuzinger 19-yard line with 1:59 to play.

On the previous drive, Tonga tied the game for the Olympians with a dive from the 1-yard line. The score was set up by his 43-yard run two plays earlier.

The one drive Palos Verdes did take advantage of came courtesy of a fourth-down stop around midfield late in the first quarter.

Then, a Rakowski 32-yard scramble put the Sea Kings in the red zone. Leuzinger came up with three stops inside the 10-yard line before Palos Verdes running back Andrew Habif scored on a fourth-and-goal from the 2.