A slow first half in the Golden State Bowl found the Cerritos College football trailing visiting Santa Barbara City College, 16-14 at halftime and then 19-14 late in the fourth quarter. But a stellar defensive effort, and a critical offensive drive propelled the Falcons (8-3) to a 22-19 win on Saturday night. In the second half, the Cerritos defense limited the Vaqueros (7-4) to just 38 yards, while two sacks on the final drive sealed the victory.

The team's game-winning drive started with field position, as a pooch-punt by freshman quarterback Jimmy Walker (Redlands HS) was downed at the SBCC two-yard line. The defense forced a three-and-out and the Falcons started possession at the their own 48-yard line. Trailing 19-14 with 6:55 left in the fourth quarter, Cerritos embarked on a seven-play, 52-yard drive that culiminated in a spectacular touchdown reception on fourth down. Sophomore running back DeVonte Carter (Dominguez HS) broke off runs of 20 and 13 yards to get the Falcons to the SBCC 20-yard line.

Two more rushing plays and an incomplete pass left the Falcons facing a fourth-and-nine at the 19-yard line. Walker (16-for-27, 152 yards) was flushed out of the pocket and lofted a pass toward the back corner of the end zone. Sophomore Justin Caines (La Habra HS) was able to come down with the ball with a defender's hands in his face as he fell backward into the corner of the end zone for a touchdown. Walker connected with a streaking Caines for a two-point conversion and the Falcons had their first lead of the game, 22-19 with 3:53 remaining.

A squib kick on the ensuing kickoff allowed the Vaqueros to start at their own 41-yard line. Sophomore defensive end Alex Jones (Maple Heights, OH HS/Eastern Michigan University) forced a bad pass on first down, while sophomore defensive tackle Garron Featherston (Los Angeles Adventist Academy HS) sacked quarterback Brandon Edwards for a seven-yard loss on second down. A pair of SBCC penalties put them in a third-and-27 situation. After a 16-yard completion to Royce Finley appeared the cause a fourth down, Cerritos was called for a dead ball unsportsmanlike penalty, which gave Santa Barbara City a first down at the Cerritos 45-yard line. But on the next play, freshman defensive back Anthony Murray (Cherokee Trail, CO HS) picked off Edwards with 1:57 left in the fourth quarter.

Cerritos was unable to run out the clock and were forced to punt the ball away with :36 seconds left. However, the Falcon defense once again shut down Santa Barbara, as Jones had two sacks and a quarterback hurry, with the second sack coming on fourth down to secure the win for the Falcons.

With all of the stars on defense, the game's Most Valuable Player went to sophomore linebacker Aaron Porter (La Habra HS/UCLA), who led all players with 12 tackles, along with 2 1/2 tackles for loss, 1 1/2 quarterback sacks and a quarterback hurry that knocked Edwards out of the game in the second quarter before he returned. Featherston (nine tackles, sack), Jones (eight tackles, three tackles for loss, sack, hurry and pass breakup) and sophomore linebacker Erick Zarate (Long Beach Jordan HS), who had seven tackles, would have been strong candidates for the Defensive Player of the Game, but that honor went to SBCC's Luigi Dorzin, who finished with 10 tackles, 2 1/2 tackles for loss and two sacks.

Carter finished the night with 125 rushing yards and 26 receiving yards, with Caines picking up the Offensive MVP with his four catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns.

In the first half, the Vaqueros were effective on offense and scored on their first drive of the game. They took a 13-0 lead early in the second quarter when Walker had the ball snapped over his head and Santa Barbara City's Jay Terry recovered the fumble in the end zone for a touchdown.

Photos by Daryl Peterson