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Agoura Kids Nearly Hit By Out-Of-Control Driver On High School Ball Field

AGOURA (CBSLA.com)  —   The principal of Agoura High School said Saturday  it was the quick thinking of coaches that saved lives and diverted tragedy when an out-of-control driver steered his car at dozens of kids.

Cellphone video captured Sheriff's Deputies arresting a 46-year old man after witnesses say he crashed through two fences and drove his car onto the freshman baseball field.

"I was just thinking I need to run for my life and I thought this was when I was going to die. I was scared for my life," one player said.

He was one of many teammates at Agoura High School who spoke to CBS2's Jeff Nguyen about their ordeal.

He says he and fellow team members were warming up before a game Saturday when he says the man steered his car right at them.

"So we ran and hopped over a fence to run for our lives," he said.

He says the man also nearly ran over the other team from Hart High School of Santa Clarita.

The suspect's Honda finally stopped when it got stuck on a berm.

There was a lot of broken glass left in the driver's wake. Witnesses told Nguyen that some parents pulled out baseball bats and bashed the cars windows. The parents reportedly pulled the suspect out of the vehicle and made a citizen's arrest.

"Extremely thankful that the team they were playing, Hart High School, there was a father on that team who was also an off-duty policeman. And so he was right on it," a parent said.

Treye Meadows and Cole Clark weren't at the game but they noticed deep tire marks on the field when they arrived  for practice.

"It makes me feel bad," said 10-year-old Clark.

"I hope I play here next year and make the team so this field will be my field next year," said 13-year-old Meadows.

The school district told Nguyen the suspect attended Agoura High in the late 1980s.

Parents and coaches were able to detain him before deputies took him off this field and into custody.

Investigators say right before the man drove onto the field, he was involved in a hit-and-run accident nearby and driving on the field was apparently his way of trying to flee.

The man's been booked on several charges, including assault with a deadly weapon and driving with a suspended license.

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