Antelope Valley rushed for 253 yards and took advantage of a key turnover with 9:27 to play on Friday night to post a come-from-behind 20-13 football win over SBCC at La Playa Stadium.
The Vaqueros (3-3, 2-1 American Pacific Conference) took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter on a 41-yard drive capped by a 3-yard run by Kevin Denis. They extended their lead in the first-place showdown to 13-0 on field goals of 33 and 27 yards by Marcus Hoerberg early in the third quarter.
The Marauders (5-1, 3-0) got their first TD on a 12-play, 65-yard drive capped by a 2-yard run by quarterback Derrick Dison. They went 93 yards and tied the game at 13 on the first play of the final quarter when Dison hit tight end Mike Williams on a 21-yard scoring toss.
SBCC fumbled on a pass play at the Marauder 38 with nine minutes to play. A personal foul moved the ball to the SBCC 47 and the AVC used a run-dominated drive to go ahead for the first time.
Dison connected with Zikerious Ware on a 34-yard post pattern. Keoki Kaiahua’s PAT made it 20-13.
“I’m proud of the way we played,” said coach Craig Moropoulos. “We have to find a way to cut down on our mistakes. Those hurt. I’m disappointed by the loss but we’re going to work hard and keep getting better.”
SBCC’s defense was stout for the first 2½ quarters. Linebacker Morgan Nevin had 15 tackles, including eight solo, and a sack. Stephen Brooks added 13 tackles and Colin Christian had 12.
Antelope Valley won the first-down battle 25-18 and the yardage war, 398 to 266. The Marauders ran 86 plays with their no-huddle offense compared to 74 for SBCC, which also uses a hurry-up attack.
The Vaqueros host L.A. Pierce on Friday at 7 p.m.
