No. 7 Golden West Rustlers take down No. 2 Riverside City, 42-35

3C2A Football Standings

HUNTINGTON BEACH – In a repeat of last year's Week 2 matchup, No. 7 state-ranked Golden West College upset No. 2 Riverside City College, this time by a final score of 42-35 at Rustler Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Golden West erased a 21-7 second-quarter deficit to pull of their second straight win over the Tigers who were once again were recognized as one of the state's top-ranked teams.

The Rustlers erupted for 21 points in the second quarter thanks to touchdown runs from Aaron Mitchell (2 yards), Noa Banua (17 yards), and Kendric Thompson (6 yards) to head into halftime with the score all tied up at 21-21.

Golden West took over in the third by outscoring RCC 14-0. Banua tossed a pair of TDs, connecting with Will McKissick for 5 yards and Tanner Schmidt for 18 yards strikes to take a commanding 35-21 lead.

But in the fourth, RCC rallied for a pair of touchdowns, including their final score with 2:06 remaining in the game that cut the lead to 7 points. The Tigers got the ball back one final time with 28 seconds left but the Rustlers' defense was able to stop them at the GWC 37-yard line as time expired.

Golden West totaled 467 yards of offense, just edging Riverside with 456 yards. Banua had another solid game, throwing for 229 yards on 20 of 32 passing with 3 TDs but a pair of interceptions. He also ran 11 times for 59 yards and a touchdown.

Mitchell led GWC on the ground, rushing 8 times for 72 yards and a TD while Thompson had 14 carries for 69 yards with a touchdown.

Schmidt hauled in 5 catches for 84 yards and a TD with McKissick grabbing 7 receptions for 83 yards and a touchdown. JC Alicea also found the end zone with his lone catch a 7-yard TD in the fourth quarter.

Brandon Soleau led Golden West on defense with 12 tackles and a forced fumble. Kruz Wheeler also had a big game with 6 tackles, a sack, a 41-yard fumble recovery, and a pass break up.

Golden West improved to 2-0 on the season and is back in action next Saturday (Sep. 13) when the Rustlers host Allan Hancock College at 1 p.m. in a non-league game.