Santa Monica, CA
October 23 ,2021
For the second week in a row, the Santa Monica College football team made a frantic comeback from a double-digit deficit, ending with a heartbreaking interception. Against visiting Antelope Valley College, the Corsairs found themselves on a 4th-and-goal in the game's final minute, but a desperation heave by freshman quarterback Sam Vaulton was picked off by the Marauder defense in the end zone, and Santa Monica fell 36-31 in another nail-biting Pacific League showdown.
Coming off a tough loss at Moorpark that saw the Corsairs (2-4, 0-2 conference) down by as much as 17 before losing by a field goal in the game's final seconds, Santa Monica's defense sparked an early lead, as freshman Linebacker Raejon Baker returned an interception 57 yards for the game's first score. After the Marauders (5-2, 2-0 conference) tied the score late into the first quarter, the Corsairs turned to their big playmakers in Vaulton and sophomore Wide Receiver Tariq Brown, as Vaulton connected with Brown for a 13-yard touchdown for a 14-7 Santa Monica edge.
Antelope Valley scored sixteen unanswered points and took a 23-14 lead early into the second half. Sophomore kicker Marcelo Navarro's 28-yard field goal cut the Corsairs' deficit to six, but the Marauders tacked on another touchdown for a 29-17 lead toward the end of the third quarter. Santa Monica's resilience continued into the final 15 minutes, as the Vaulton-Brown combination stunned the Antelope Valley defense again with a 12-yard pass-and-catch score to pull the Corsairs within five. Despite the best efforts of the offense, the Santa Monica defense, stymied all afternoon in the air, allowed its fourth touchdown pass of the game with 8:54 remaining for a 36-24 Marauder lead.
Vaulton, menaced all day by an Antelope Valley pass rush that sacked him eight times, persevered to land his third touchdown pass, firing a perfect 26-yard spiral to freshman Wide Receiver Richard Kick to get the Corsairs within five one more time. With 3:38 left, the Santa Monica defense stood its ground with a momentous 4th-and-2 stop from the Marauders' 38-yard line, giving the offense a short field and enough time for the win. The Marauders' relentless pass rush reached Vaulton twice for six and five yards lost, but Vaulton fought through the pressure to complete 4-of-5 passes on the drive to lead the Corsairs to a 4th-and-goal from the Antelope Valley eight-yard-line. The Marauder defense forced Vaulton backward, and his off-heels pass would be intercepted amongst a pile of mostly Marauders to end another wild Santa Monica comeback bid.
Vaulton finished with a second consecutive 400-yard game in the air, completing 32-of-49 passes for 409 yards, along with the three touchdowns and an interception. Brown had a season-high 10 receptions for 210 yards and the two touchdowns. Baker added a team-high seven tackles to go with his interception return for a score.
Santa Monica will look for its first conference win next Saturday at Los Angeles Pierce College at 6 p.m. before a home finale vs Los Angeles Valley College on November 6 at 1 p.m.