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They don’t have to worry about another winless season.
Santa Barbara High snapped a 12-game losing streak on Friday night at Peabody Stadium, while Channel Islands could never get going as the Dons pulled off a 17-0 victory — the first of Jaime Melgoza’s tenure as head coach.
Sophomore quarterback Shawn Ramos completed his first 10 passes, heading into halftime at 10-12 for 100 yards. He finished the night 13-17 with 115 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
“Yeah, I was extremely surprised in myself,” said Ramos. “After the first play, I felt like all the nerves went away. The line was incredible tonight.”
Santa Barbara's Bradford Jellison rushes for a short gain in the first quarter. (Vince Agapito Photos)
The Raiders (0-1), meanwhile, couldn’t get open for quarterback Malcolm Allen, as he went 4-for-12 with 25 yards through the air. Ty Camarillo provided most of the offense, rushing for 59 yards on 11 carries before leaving the game with a lower leg injury in the fourth quarter.
“I knew we were gonna come in here and face a team ready to overcome their season last year,” said coach Gary Porter. “I think we held ourselves back by making way too many mental mistakes. We were prepared, but we didn’t perform.”
Melgoza was dunked by a water bucket on the sidelines after the game, and the relief on his face was apparent.
“We’ve been working so hard — the coaches, the players and everyone. Yeah, we’re young, but tonight they played at a different level and they realize that if they really want to come out here and play some good football they can,” he said.
Santa Barbara (1-0) struck early, as Brad Jellison went up the gut and busted a 55-yard touchdown run with 10 minutes to go in the first quarter. Ramos hit Matt Gonzalez for a 25-yard score four minutes into the second quarter, and Dons kicker Matthew Medina booted a 46-yard field goal with 2:23 left in the first half to end the night’s scoring.
Cristian Flores put the only blemish on Ramos’ stellar debut with an interception at the start of the fourth quarter, but Channel Islands would go three-and-out on its next two possessions.
Dons quarterback Shawn Ramos fights for extra yardage
The Dons were hitting hard, as a mega-block by Jason Jimenez on a kickoff in the first quarter sent a Raiders player’s helmet flying off. Jellison and Rudy Corrales also had notable hits in the second half, and Robert Palmer picked up two sacks for losses in a 3-play span.
Tensions were high, and the field was littered with yellow flags throughout the night. The Dons drew 14 penalties for 105 yards, while the Raiders lost 70 yards on eight. Each team was called for three 15-yard personal fouls.
The victory has the Dons believing in their young squad, which starts 10 sophomores.
“It’s a whole new atmosphere here at Santa Barbara. We’re bringing the pride back,” he said.
The Dons play at Beverly Hills next week.
SANTA BARBARA 17, CHANNEL ISLANDS 0
Channel Islands…0 0 0 0 — 0
Santa Barbara…7 10 0 0 — 17
First Quarter
SB — Jellison 55 run (Medina kick), 10:00
Second Quarter
SB — Gonzalez 25 pass from Ramos (Medina kick), 8:23
SB — Medina 46 FG, 2:23
Team Totals CI, SB
First Downs 8, 10
Rushes-yards 25-82, 31-120
Passing yards 25, 115
Total yards 107, 235
Passes 4-12-25, 13-17-115
Punts/Avg 6/43, 3/36
Penalties 8-70, 14-105
Individual Totals
Rushing — CI: Camarillo 11-59, Reyes 3-(-13), Gray 5-16, Allen 6-20. SB: Ramos 8-(-1), #56 1-3, Jellison 9-60, Munoz 3-18, Lopez 5-24, Corrales 5-16.
Passing — CI: Allen 4-12-1-25. SB: Ramos 13-17-1-115.
Receiving — CI: Valoaga 2-20, Camarillo 2-5. SB: Gonzalez 3-39, Richardson 2-12, Gonzalez 5-53, Jellison 1-5, Lopez 1-6.
Records — CI: 0-1, SB: 1-0.
Nice job Jaime and all the Dons! Bringing back the football tradition at SBHS is awesome!