Huge momentum swings shifted against the Santa Barbara High football team in the second half as Ventura clawed its way to a 24-21 victory Friday night at Larrabee Stadium.
The visiting Cougars’ thrilling Channel League victory snapped Santa Barbara’s four-game winning streak and will have major playoff implications for both teams moving forward.
“The boys fought all the way until the end. Down ten, they still gave themselves a chance at the end,” said Santa Barbara coach Nate Mendoza. “Credit to Ventura for being able to run out the clock at the end.”
After Santa Barbara turned the ball over on downs in Ventura territory to start the game, the Cougars mounted a 10-play, 65-yard drive capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by Tristan Savage with three minutes remaining in the first quarter. The ensuing extra point was blocked by Santa Barbara.
The Dons responded with a 10-play, 67-yard drive capped by a 22-yard touchdown pass from Griffin Arnold to Keegan Roessler, giving Santa Barbara a 7-6 lead with 10:35 left in the second quarter.
After a quick three-and-out by Ventura, it appeared Santa Barbara might pull away as Everret Rabb Preston plunged into the end zone from 5 yards out, extending the lead to 14-6.
On the ensuing kickoff, Cade Mault executed a perfect pooch kick down the sideline, and Santa Barbara recovered. After three consecutive pass plays, the Dons were forced to punt from the Ventura 34-yard line, resulting in a touchback.
Three plays later, Ventura quarterback Gavin Scarlett connected with Savage on a 45-yard bomb, cutting the Cougars’ deficit to 14-12 with 1:13 remaining in the first half.
Ventura opened the third quarter with a long drive to the Santa Barbara 4-yard line, but the Dons held, as Lucas Blessing recovered a fumble on fourth down.
The Santa Barbara defense stiffened in the red zone again late in the third quarter, forcing Ventura into a fourth-and-24 situation at the 28-yard line.
Instead of attempting a go-ahead field goal, Ventura went for the touchdown. Scarlett evaded the Santa Barbara blitz, rolled to his left and delivered a frozen rope into the end zone, where Jaddyn Delorenzo made the catch at the back of the end zone.
“Gavin has made huge strides this year. He has taken this offense on his shoulders,” said Ventura coach Tim Garcia. “He has become that offensive leader that we need.”
The touchdown gave Ventura an 18-14 lead after a failed two-point conversion with 11:51 remaining in the fourth quarter.
On the first play of the ensuing drive, disaster struck for Santa Barbara. Arnold connected with Fin Congdon on a 6-yard pass, but Congdon was hit immediately, and the ball came loose. Ventura recovered, and the fumble call was upheld after a brief discussion among the referees.
Three plays later, Dago Magana scored on a 7-yard touchdown run, putting Ventura ahead 24-14 after another missed extra point with 10:04 remaining.
Trailing by two scores, Arnold went deep to Roessler on the fifth play of the ensuing drive, cutting Ventura’s lead to 24-21 with 8:23 remaining.
After each team went three-and-out, Ventura was able to drain the clock. A 41-yard run by Josh Barton with less than three minutes to play helped secure the victory.
Arnold finished 21-of-33 passing for 296 yards and two touchdowns. Savage was sidelined for much of the second half due to an injury.
Royal 21, Dos Pueblos 17
The host Highlanders rallied to snap Dos Pueblos’ three-game winning streak and remain undefeated at 7-0.
San Marcos 30, Santa Paula 13
The Royals snapped a two-game losing streak and improved to 1-1 in Tri-County League play after pulling away from host Santa Paula in the second half. Austin Downing booted a 47-yard field goal.
Carpinteria 35, Santa Clara 7
The Warriors picked up their first victory of the season with a road win over Santa Clara. Starting quarterback Isaac Neri returned to the lineup after missing several games due to an injury.
You must be logged in to post a comment.