A key Channel League contest slipped away from the San Marcos High flag football team on Thursday night at Warkentin Stadium as visiting Ventura scored the go-ahead touchdown late in the fourth quarter to capture a 6-0 victory.
Offense was hard to come by for both teams, but the Cougars came through with a clutch drive when it mattered most. Aubreona Hernandez connected with Mya Rodriguez on fourth-and-goal from the seven-yard line for the lone touchdown of the game with 4:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.
“The defense has been doing a great job all year,” said San Marcos coach Walter Bazylewicz. “We are just not playing complementary football right now, and we’ve got to get that figured out.”
The Royals will need to find a new identity against strong competition as they are currently without standout freshman Bella Bazylewicz, who was injured one week ago against Dos Pueblos. Prior to the injury, she had emerged as a key contributor on both sides of the ball and a focal point on offense.
“We’ve always rotated a lot of players, and we will continue to do that,” Bazylewicz said. “We’re young, and we try to get a variety of people the ball and give them a chance to make some plays.”
After San Marcos punted on its opening drive of the game, Ventura drove the ball deep into the Royals’ territory, but on first-and-goal from the 12-yard line, sophomore Scarlett Holian intercepted a Ventura pass to thwart the scoring threat.
San Marcos began to gain traction on offense early in the second quarter with an eight-play drive, but Victoria Aldana’s pass to Lucca DiGuilio fell incomplete on fourth-and-goal from the six-yard line.
Aldana went on to intercept a Ventura pass with 32 seconds remaining in the first half to give the Royals another scoring chance, but they were unable to capitalize as the two teams went into halftime tied at zero.
Ventura appeared to take the lead midway through the third quarter as Hernandez reached the end zone from two yards out, but an illegal block wiped away the score, and San Marcos forced four consecutive incompletions to regain possession.
After a San Marcos punt, Ventura mounted the game-winning drive, converting a third-and-one from the 39-yard line with a 21-yard pass from Hernandez to Rodriguez. A 10-yard run by freshman Piper Limauro brought the Cougars to the five-yard line.
A sack by San Marcos freshman Norah Leonardi on third down pushed Ventura back to the seven-yard line for the decisive play, but Hernandez and Rodriguez were able to execute a quick slant to reach the end zone.
With the loss, San Marcos drops to 12-7 overall and 1-3 in Channel League play.
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