Los Angeles, CA(Football) – They say that what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger. After surviving an ugly 10-7 overtime win against Los Angeles Southwest College this afternoon, the Citrus College Fighting Owl’s will hope that the old adage will holds true with only one more game left to clinch a playoff berth and their 4th straight WSC Championship.
The Owl’s struggled to put points on the board getting their only score during regulation in the 1st quarter. Leonard Mason continued terrorizing the defenses of the WSC, as he rushed for 145 yards on 26 carries. Mason averaged 5.6 yards a carry and reached the end zone once for the Owl’s lone score of the game with 2:52 left in the 1st quarter.
Offensively the Owl’s weren’t as potent as they were last week, with quarterback Brian Waggener throwing 3 picks and getting sacked 3 times. Despite the some poor decisions, Waggener finished the day 18 of 29 for 164 yards and no touchdowns.
The Owl’s were bolstered by a stellar defensive outing, in particular by the play of Demarcus Flanagan. Flanagan was all over the field for the Fighting Owls wreaking havoc wherever he went. For the day Flanagan recorded 9.5 tackles, 1.5 for a loss, 1 sack, 2 pass break-ups, and 1 interception that he returned for 24 yards. Flanagan was even called on to get the Owls a pivotal first down as he filled in at full-back for a play.
After giving up a 36 yard touchdown rush to LA Southwest’s Darryl Crummie in the beginning of the 2nd quarter, the Owl’s defense held strong only allowing the Cougar’s to rush for 86 yards and pass for 151 on the day.
After the Cougar score in the 2nd quarter, both teams would trade punts and turn-overs including some at crucial moments. In the 4th quarter the Owl’s had an excellent chance to score and put the game away with the ball on the LA Southwest 9 yard line. Mason received the hand off from Waggener and fumbled the ball giving the ball back to the Cougar’s with over 10 minutes left to play in the game.
After the Owl’s defense forced the Cougar’s to punt, the Owl’s turned the ball over once again as Waggener threw his 3rd pick of the game, right into the hands of a Cougar defender who returned the ball to the Citrus 34 yard line. LA Southwest would turn around and give the ball right back to the Owl’s when Crummie fumbled the ball on the Citrus 17 yard line.
The Owl’s offense wasn’t able to make any movement against the Cougar defense and was forced to punt the ball away with 2:43 left on the clock. Punter Nick Somes boomed the ball to the LA Southwest 10 with a 43 yard kick.
With their backs against the wall with 3rd and 10, Cougar back-up quarterback Kurio Alexander hit Javonte Taylor for a 47 yard gain to the Citrus 21. The Citrus defense would put a stop to the Cougar offense, causing them to lose 9 yards in three plays. The Cougar’s, still in field goal range, brought in kicker Arnulfo Guevera to kick a 45 yard field goal, that fell short and sent the game into overtime.
The Cougar’s would win the coin toss and elect to go first. On their very first play in overtime Alexander threw the ball towards the end zone where Caleb Flores was ready to grab his 3rd pick of the year to give the Owl’s the ball back and a chance to win the game.
The Owl’s gave the Cougar’s a healthy dose of Mason, who would get the Owl’s down inside the 8 yard line. Mistakes proved to be costly, however as the Owl’s were forced back to the 14 yard line. With a down to give, the Owl’s brought out kicker Kirk Cabana for a 33 yard attempt to win the game. Unlike his counterpart, Cabana drilled it right down the middle to give the Owl’s a 10-7 win in overtime.
With the win the Owl’s improve to 6-3 on the season and a perfect 6-0 in WSC play. The Owl’s have only one more game left in the regular season as they travel next Saturday to take on West LA. Kickoff will be at 1:00 pm.
Box Score