Defense, kickers and a third-string quarterback made the difference for No. 22 SBCC on Saturday night as the Vaqueros remained unbeaten with a dramatic 18-16 football win over Antelope Valley in Lancaster.
With the score tied at 16 and less than 90 seconds to play, Tim Gleeson landed a punt inside the 5 and it rolled to the 1 where Dillon Sheedy downed it for SBCC. On first down, Sheedy and Mike Lockwood broke through the right side and tackled Kendrick Mapp in the end zone for a safety that proved to be the difference.
“The defense played great,” said Sheedy, a freshman defensive end. “We had to step up when our starting quarterback got hurt right off the bat. We had to rise above and make some plays.
“Coach (Kevin) Almlie had the right play called on the safety and we got through the gaps.”
The Marauders (2-4, 2-1 APC) scored nine straight points with a fourth-quarter safety on a punt snap out of the end zone and a 41-yard scoring pass from Anders Westlund to Hunter Sharp that tied the game at 16 with 3:04 to play. That capped an 11-play, 93-yard march.
The Vaqueros (6-0, 3-0), ranked 13th in Southern Cal, are one of two unbeaten teams in Southern California, along with Fullerton. There are five 6-0 teams in California.
Santa Barbara got a strong performance from quarterback Bruce Shipley, who entered the game on the Vaqueros’ second offensive series after Josh Martin sprained his ankle. Martin threw for a school-record 5 TDs in his first college start two weeks ago during a 44-7 rout over L.A. Southwest.
Shipley completed 13-of-29 passes for 209 yards without an interception.
“When we lost our quarterback and went to our third-string guy, we had to ask some other guys to step up,” said coach Craig Moropoulos. “Landon Poling, Jacob Arnell and the running backs made some big, big plays.
“Once again, our defense rose up. They bend, they bend but they don’t break. Our special teams broke down early, then we get a great punt, great kickoffs and three 40-yard plus field goals.”
Poling had two catches for 57 yards, including a 21-yarder on the last drive of the first half that led to Marcus Hoerberg’s 43-yard field goal with four seconds left that gave the Vaqueros a 9-7 halftime advantage.
After AVC took a 7-0 lead on a 19-yard TD pass, Hoerberg booted field goals of 44, 47 and 43 yards in the last 5:48 of the second quarter. The 47-yarder was a career best for the sophomore from Sweden.
“We kept doing what we always do,” said Hoerberg, who missed a 40-yard kick in the first quarter. “You have to keep the confidence, both in myself, the snapper, the holder and the whole kicking team. We made the last three without any interference.”
After the safety put SBCC on top 18-16, AVC tried an onside kick from its own 20 but Royce Finley recovered at the 28. Orion Prescott rushed for 5 and 6 yards to give SBCC the first down it needed to run out the clock.
SBCC’s defense — ranked No. 1 in Southern California in scoring defense at 15.6 per game – was solid again. Nevin, a sophomore linebacker, made 13 tackles with 2.5 sacks, cornerback Tavonte Jackson intercepted a pair of passes and Lockwood had a season-high 11 tackles, including 2.5 for loss.
“The defense stepped up when we needed to and the offense hung in there,” said Nevin, the state leader in tackles. “Our third-string quarterback had a good game and didn’t throw a pick. And all our kickers were great.”
Gleeson averaged 43.2 yards on eight punts. He’s now the No. 1 punter in Southern Cal with a 40.3 average.
Lockwood, a 6-5, 255-pound freshman lineman from Santa Rosa, also recovered a fumble that led to SBCC’s first TD, a 1-yard run by Prescott with 5:22 remaining in the third quarter that boosted the lead to 16-7. Three plays earlier, Shipley connected with Arnell (7 catches, 136 yards) on a 59-yard bomb to the 3-yard line.
Jackson’s second interception came at his own 8 with 8:47 left in the game, foiling a potential scoring drive.
“It feels real good to be 6-0, I know Santa Barbara hasn’t done this in a long time,” Nevin concluded. “We just want to keep rolling on to next week.”
SBCC travels to L.A. Pierce (5-1, 3-0) for another first-place showdown on Saturday at 7 p.m.
