Chaffey Falls to Riverside in Thriller Fourth Quarter Surge
By Aaron Rogers
Captains for both Chaffey and Riverside meet for the coin toss. (Photo by Eliam Carrion)
Rancho Cucamonga, CA - Oct. 9
Chaffey suffers a devastating defeat to No. 16 ranked Riverside City College (RCC) 27-41 following a fourth quarter surge by RCC's offense.
The Panthers entered Thursday night's game coming off their bye week looking to get back into the win column. Their record was 1-4 overall and 0-1 in league play.
Coming off two loses to No.10 ranked El Camino and No.11 ranked Saddleback College, the Panthers had another ranked opponent with the No.16 ranked RCC.
Chaffey's offense finished with a total of 291 yards, including 212 passing yards as coaches continued to split quarterback snaps.
Starting Quarterback Evan Powell went 12-23 with 153 passing yards, 3 touchdowns and an interception, while rushing for 29 yards.
Quarterback Frankie Villalbazo went 5-15 with 53 passing yards, one touchdown and an interception, while rushing for 14 yards.
"They're both incredible leaders, with gifted athletic ability. Both are division one guys in my opinion and that plays into why both split snaps," said Quarterback coach John Aldridge. "They are both very young and never complained about reps or have ever been selfish. They put the team first and believe whatever we feel is best for the team. Before practice they play rock paper scissors for who goes first in practice."
Wide receiver Nehemiah Harrison led the team with three touchdowns, this adds up to a total of five touchdowns on the season.
Riverside's rushing attack overwhelmed the Panthers' defense, racking up 391 yards on the ground and totaling 543 yards on offense. The interceptions thrown by Chaffey's Quarterback tandem led to the abundance of yardage gained by Riverside.
"Details matter in big games like this, we didn't capitalize on a turnover late in the game. Little things like that matter in a game like this", said Aldridge after the game.
Chaffey had the lead heading into the fourth quarter 27-20 until Riverside scored 21 unanswered points to win the game 41-27. Riverside took control of the game by getting back-to-back fourth down stops late in the game.
In a post-game interview, head coach Ben Buys said, "We made mistakes and we didn't finish what we needed to. The best is ahead of us."
Late in the fourth quarter tempers began to flare on the Panthers side of the ball. Cornerback Ernest Powell was ejected from the game for throwing an RCC player's helmet after the play.
Head Referee Mark Millsom separates players from both teams. (Photo by Eliam Carrion)
This led to both teams agreeing to forgo the post-game handshake. After the game, both teams were separated by coaches as players on the Riverside sideline taunted Chaffey players.
Riverside players taunting Chaffey players after the game. (Photo by Eliam Carrion)
Chaffey is looking to get back on track as they welcome Mt. San Jacinto at home Saturday Oct. 18, at 6 p.m. PDT. Mt. San Jacinto is 2-4 overall and 0-3 in conference and is coming off a loss to Saddleback 24-13.
This will be the annual tailgate party, festivities will start at 4 p.m. at Grigsby Field prior to the game. Admission to both the Tailgate Party and football game are free.