The Pirate football team pulled away for a 34-10 victory over Santa barbara Saturday night to retain the Big Game trophy. Quarterback Daniel Duran passed for 312 yards and three scores while running back Quran Gossett totaled 91 yards on the ground. Silas Kemp had four catches for 107 yards and a touchdown and Jayon Farrar had a pair of scores in his three catches on the night. Brayden Beck had a 42-yard pick-six late to put the game away for state No. 9-ranked VC (4-1, 2-0).
It looked as if it would be a blow-out early. The VC defense forced a three-and-out by the Vaqueros on the first possession of the game and the Pirates took just three plays to score following the SBCC punt. Gossett set up the touchdown with a 58-yard run on the Pirates' first play from scrimmage and Duran connected with Farrar from five yards out for the touchdown. Ryan Pimentel's kick gave the Pirates a 7-0 lead less than four minutes into the game.
The Pirate defense forced another punt on the ensuing possession and Ventura was driving for another score before a fumble at the SBCC 1-yard line stopped the progress.
Santa Barbara, who possessed the ball nearly 25 minutes more than Ventura during the game, went on a 20-play drive late in the first into the second quarter that took over 10 minutes off the clock. They scored a field goal at the end of the drive to pull to within 7-3 at the 6:39 mark of the period.
VC drove 85 yards in nine plays late in the half, culminating in a four yard Jake Murphy run to paydirt with 40 seconds remaining on the clock. Pimentel's kick made it 14-3 for VC at intermission.
Murphy in for 6…PAT is good…14-3 Pirates pic.twitter.com/UwAL3e9Bes
— VCPirateAthletics (@VCAthletics) October 6, 2024
Santa Barbara came out strong on the second half, intercepting a Duran pass at midfield, then marching 48 yards for a touchdown to pull to within 14-10.
The Pirates, forced to punt on the next possession, recovered a Vaquero fumble, and had a field goal blocked as the score remained close midway through the third quarter.
Late in the quarter, Ventura took over after a short punt, driving 75 yards on seven plays to right the ship. Duran's 32-yard scoring strike to Farrar punctuated the possession, and Ventura led 20-10 with 3:30 on the clock.
The Pirate defense came up big early in the final stanza, stopping SBCC on a fourth-and-two at the VC-39 as Anthony Martinez tackled the Vaquero ball carrier for no gain.
The offense wasted no time as Duran connected with Silas Kemp on a 61-yard bomb to the end zone. Pimentel's kick provided more breathing room as VC opened up a 27-10 margin.
Ventura drove to the SB-33 midway through the period, but were unsuccessful on a fourth-and-seven try, handing the ball back to the Vaqueros. Two plays later, Beck intercepted an SBCC pass and took it 42 yards to the house for a pick-six to put the game well away. Redshirt freshman Ashley McMichael then made her first appearance for the orange and black, successfully converting the PAT kick to set the final margin.
Brayden Beck with the pick 6…Ashley McMichael with the PAT…and it's good. Pirates lead 34-10 pic.twitter.com/hjmSfGRgMT
— VCPirateAthletics (@VCAthletics) October 6, 2024
Duran was 19-33 through the air for 312 yards and three touchdowns. He completed passes to seven different receivers. Farrar totaled 53 receiving yards on the night and Tyler Woodworth had 52 yards on three receptions. Gossett totaled 130overall yards, 91 on the ground on 11 carries and 39 receiving yards on five receptions. Jake Murphy totaled 42 yards on the ground on six carries, including one score.
Defensively, Martinez and Spencer McKelligon each totaled eight tackles and Tyrus Malietufa recorded seven stops.
VC heads into the bye week on a high note before hosting Moorpark on Saturday Oct. 19 in the 56th edition of the Citrus Cup. Kickoff at the VC Sportsplex is scheduled for 6:00 pm.
