It looked as though the Cerritos College football team was going to pull out a win against Ventura College at home on Saturday night. Freshman quarterback Jimmy Walker (Redlands HS) had just connected on a 21-yard scoring strike to freshman wide receiver De' Jai Whitaker (Santa Monica HS) with 2:20 left on the clock for a 31-28 lead over the Pirates after a two-point conversion to sophomore wide receiver Justin Caines (La Habra HS) was good. But Ventura was able to drive the ball downfield and scored with :13 seconds left to pull out a 35-31 Northern Conference win.

Trailing 28-23, Cerritos (2-2, 0-1) took possession of the ball at their own 25-yard line with 4:31 left in the fourth quarter. Faced with a third-and-five at their own 43-yard line, Caines picked up 10 yards on an end around to keep the drive going. Ventura was then called for a pass interference, which put the ball at the Pirates 32-yard line. An 11-yard reception set up the go-ahead touchdown, as Whitaker made a great move along the sideline to escape Isaiah Jackson and reach the end zone. 

On the two-point conversion, the Falcons were called for unsportsmanlike conduct, forcing sophomore Brandon Romero (Norwalk HS) to kick off from the Cerritos 20-yard line. Ventura started their drive at their own 41-yard line with 2:10 on the clock and two timeouts. They converted a third-and-eight situation when Marc Evans found Chris Marshall across the middle of the field. Evans (27-for-39, 292 yards, 4 TD) hit a streaking Aaron Lacombe, who was tripped up by freshman Kyle Ray (Servite HS) at the Falcon nine yard line. Three plays later, Evans hit Chris Marshall in the back of the end zone for the game-winning touchdown. It was the 15th reception of the night for Marshall.

Cerritos fell behind 14-0 in the first quarter, as the Pirates picked off Walker (18-for-33, 285 yards, 3 TD, 4 INT), with Dylan Boyce going untouched 40 yards for a touchdown. They also scored on their first offensive drive on a 53-yard scoring strike to Marshall.

The Falcons accounted for the next two scores, with Walker connecting with sophomore Domonique Young (Long Beach Jordan HS) from 11 yards out and sophomore tight end Lance Tongakilo (Keebra Park State, Australia) from a yard out in the second quarter. Ventura regained the lead 21-13 until sophomore running back DeVonte Carter (Dominguez HS) ran for a one-yard score and Romero booted a 28-yard field goal.

The Falcons outgained the Pirates in rushing yards (146-56) and total yards (432-348), but it was the four interceptions that did in Cerritos on the night. Young finished the night with nine receptions for 161 yards, which are the 10th most in a game in school history.

On defense, it was sophomore linebackers Erick Zarate (Long Beach Jordan HS) and Aaron Porter (La Habra HS/UCLA) that led the way with nine and eight stops, respectively.

The team will travel to Pasadena City College next Saturday for a 6:00 p.m. game.

Photos by Daryl Peterson