After digging themselves into a 27-0 hole at SoCal No. 3-ranked Golden West, the seventh-ranked Pirate football team nearly made it all the way back, falling 30-23 to the Rustlers Saturday night in non-conference action in Costa Mesa. VC (3-3, 1-1) had possession of the ball in the final two minutes of the game with a chance to tie, but their sixth turnover ended the Pirate comeback bid.
After an opening three-and-out by the Pirates, Golden West wasted little time to break the ice. The Rustlers took just three plays to drive 73 yards to grab an early 6-0 advantage. Late in the first quarter, Golden West scored their second touchdown to make the score 13-0 with 2:53 remaining in the period.
On the ensuing drive, VC was marching down the field before an interception halted their progress. The Rustlers returned the pick to the end zone to take a 20-0 lead at the end of the quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Golden West was able to find paydirt on their next drive, putting VC into a 27-0 hole barely 18 minutes into the contest.
Although they were down, the Pirates were not out, however, as they picked themselves off the mat to march 79 yards in 10 plays, using just 1:36 off the clock. Quarterback Ty Gangi finished the drive with a two-yard run and Jake Lanski's kick narrowed the gap to 27-7. the big play of the drive was a conversion of fourth-and 13 on a 29-yard pass play from Gangi to CJ Pride.
The teams remained scoreless for the remainder of the half, with the Ventura defense forcing punts on three consecutive Golden West possessions. Unfortunately, the high-octane VC offense hit a couple of bumps in the quarter in the way of their second and third interceptions of the evening. The rustlers maintained their 27-7 lead at the break.
On their opening drive of the third quarter, Golden West marched down the field for an apparent touchdown. A holding penalty nullified the score, however, and the VC defense held on their second chance, forcing a Rustler field goal.
Midway through the period, a GWC punt pinned the Pirates at their own 1-yard line. Quarterback Brandon Jones came off the bench to lead a nine-play 99-yard drive, finishing it with a 14-yard pass play to Austin Blake-Smith. Lanski's kick closed the gap to 30-14.
On the next Ventura drive, DJ Martin punched the ball in from a yard out early in the fourth quarter. The two-point try failed, and the Pirates trailed 30-20 with 14:57 left to play.
On the next drive, Ventura's defense held off the Rustlers once again, as Britto Tutt intercepted a pass the the Pirate 15-yard line. The offense was forced to punt after five plays and 37 yards, but Tutt gave VC the ball back on the next play with his second interception in as many possessions.
Ventura cashed in the turnover for three points on a 28-yard field goal by Lanski to pull to within seven, 30-23 with 8:03 still remaining.
The Pirate comeback would get no closer, however. The defense did force one final Rustler punt, but VC was pinned back at the two-yard line with 2:14 on the clock. On the ensuing drive, the Pirates were able to move the ball 33 yards in nine plays, but they turned the ball over via their fifth interception on the night with less than a minute remaining.
Gangi and Jones each passed for 160 yards on the night, and Martin led the rushing attack with 94 yards on 17 carries. Seven players caught passes for the Pirates with Martin hauling in six catches for 78 yards. Jake Mann had seven catches for 71 yards.
Defensively, Grant Bouma and Mark Zavala led the way with six tackles each. Ereck Wilson Jr. recorded five stops in the game.
Ventura will return home to resume Northern Conference play on Saturday Oct. 17. they will host Pasadena City College at 6:00 pm at the VC Sportsplex. The game will be carried live online on the VC Sports Network.