Glendora, CA (Football) – With two games of dominating defense under their belt, the Citrus College football team was looking for their offensive to step up in a big way in their conference opener against Compton College Saturday night. The Fighting Owls offense did just that, as they built upon the momentum they got started last week against Victor Valley. The Citrus offense racked up 346 yards, including 250 in the air on their way to a 42-21 victory.
While the Citrus offense was nearly unstoppable for most of the night, it was the Fighting Owl defense that would get on the board first. After forcing the Owl’s four and out on the first drive, Compton took over the ball on their own 20 yard line. On their very first play from scrimmage, Comtpon’s Kyle Parrish threw the ball into the hands of Citrus linebacker Devin Johnson who returned the ball 24 yards for a touchdown.
The defense continued the trend they set in the first two games, by forcing yet another turnover just three plays later. Defensive lineman Zach Williams got Tartar’s running back Dennis Shelton to cough up the ball at the Compton 47-yard line where Citrus’ Jacob Murphy pounced on it, giving the Citrus offense the ball.
After a false start penalty, the Citrus offense sprang into action as quarterback John Garcia hit wide receiver Mark Castaneda for a 52 yard bomb that resulted in a Fighting Owl touchdown. Less than five minutes into the game the Fighting Owls had all ready built up a 14-0 lead.
It didn’t stop there however, as Compton fumbled yet again, giving the ball back to Citrus at their own 44-yard line, with Zach Williams getting credit for recovering the ball. Ten plays and 56 yards later, the Fighting Owls were on the scoreboard again after Aaron Ridgeway capped off the drive with a four yard touchdown run. Citrus would score twice more before the half was up and take a 35-7 advantage into the locker room.
After both teams took turns with the ball to start off the second half, it would be the Tartar’s who would strike first. New quarterback Marcus Allen would lead Compton on an eight play 73 yard drive, that would put the Tartar’s down by 22.
The Citrus offense continued its explosive nature however, and after getting the ball on their own 35 yard line, after a squib kick and personal foul penalty, John Garcia completed three straight passes that ended in another Fighting Owl score. Mark Castaneda got his second touchdown of the night on a 20-yard reception giving the Owl’s a 42-13 advantage. Compton would score again in the fourth quarter, but it was too little too late, as the Owl’s picked up their first conference win.
In the win Citrus was led by John Garcia who completed 19 of his 29 passes for 222 yards and three touchdowns. Mark Castaneda was the Owls’ leading receiver, catching seven passes for 114 yards and two TD’s. Defensively, Paul Clark was Citrus’ leading tackler recording 4.5 tackles including 1.5 tackles for a loss. Andrew Fakatoka also put together a strong resume with three tackles, one forced fumble, and one sack.
With the win the Fighting Owls improve to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in WSC play. Citrus hits the road next week as it heads to Santa Monica, CA to take on the Corsairs of Santa Monica College. Kickoff is set for 7:00 PM.
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