Outright Titles, Shared Crowns Highlight Week 10 Of Football Season

Anderson Mercer caught four passes for 110 yards and a touchdown and returned an interception 65 yards for a pivotal score as the visiting Agoura High football team earned the inaugural Coastal 101 League championship with a 35-21 win over Las Virgenes rival Calabasas on Friday, Oct. 30. 

Mercer’s pick-6 gave the Chargers a 20-7 lead in the second quarter of the winner-take-all rivalry showdown.

 “Our defense really settled in, got stops, and did what we needed to do,” said Agoura hed coach Dustin Croick. “Anderson’s play was the turning point.”

Kris Carranza completed 11 of 15 passes for 199 yards and three TDs, Murphy Glynn caught five passes for 68 yards and a TD, Emerson Andrews caught a TD pass, and Radeen Vahidi ran for a score for the Chargers (9-1), which finished 5-0 in league play.  

The Chargers, who have now won three straight league titles for the first time in school history, extended their league winning streak to 14 games.  

Dominik Hardy completed 24 of 35 passes for 215 yards and a TD and ran 68 yards and a TD for Calabasas (8-2, 4-1), which finished second in league.

“The quarterback is really good,” said Croick of Hardy. “Our defensive line didn’t get one sack. I give a lot of credit to him. He’s a great athlete.”

Kingston Celifie had a 8-yard TD run and Cameron Breedenlove caught a 14-yard TD pass for Calabasas.

“We made a lot of errors that you can’t made in a game like that,” said Calabasas head coach Cary Harris. “They just played better. It is what it is.”

Both teams are headed to the CIF-Southern Section playoffs. The pairings will be announced Sunday.

Pacifica 42, Simi Valley 20 

Taylor Lee completed of 15 of 21 passes for 398 yards and five TDs and Anthony Jacobs caught six passes for 208 yards and four TDs as the Tritons clinched a share of the Marmonte League title with a home win. 

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The performance earned Lee the school record for career passing yards with 7,400, breaking R.J. Maria’s previous mark of 7,250. Lee also moved to second on the all-time Ventura County passing touchdowns record with 95. 

Jamarcus Harmon rushed for 107 yards on seven carries, Isaiah Phelps ran for 70 yards and a TD on nine carries, and Will Jones Jr. caught four passes for 111 yards and a TD for Pacifica (8-2, 4-1), which shared the league title with St. Bonaventure.

“That Pacifica team is just dynamic,” said Simi Valley head coach Jim Benkert.  

Connor Petrov had a TD pass and a TD run and Sal Villa ran for a score for Simi Valley (5-5, 1-4), which will await word of its at-large playoff bid. 

Moorpark 29, Westlake 27 (OT) 

Blake Davidson’s 2-point pass to Ian Fraser on a fake extra-point attempt in overtime provided the decisive points as the Musketeers earned a share of the Channel League title with a dramatic road win.

Colby Cronquist scored three times on two receptions and a run, Dawson Armstrong completed 13 of 18 passes for 150 yards and three TDs, and Brody Tweedy ran for 90 yards on 18 carries for Moorpark (8-2), which finished 4-1 in the Channel alongside Santa Barbara.

Westlake (7-3) dropped to 3-2 with its second straight loss, despite 284 yards passing and two TDs from freshman quarterback Hendrix Tucker. Erik Green caught a 9-yard TD pass.

Moorpark led 7-0 at the half.

“Our defense did an incredible job the first half of the game,” said Moorpark head coach Christian Dearborn. “We got really creative.”

Westlake twice took the lead in the fourth quarter on a Tucker TD pass and a Chaise Morton 9-yard TD run.

“We’re going through some growing pains,” said Westlake head coach Rick Clausen.

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After missing a potential game-winning field goal at the end of regulation, Moorpark retook the lead 27-21 in overtime on a 1-yard Cronquist run on fourth-and-goal. 

Oaks Christian 51, Bishop Diego 7 

Cody Bird completed 8 of 12 passes for 231 yards and four TDs as the Lions (3-7) completed their late surge to grab an automatic playoff berth.  

“We just needed to focus on playing our best football and we did,” said Oaks Christian head coach Rudy Carlton, who guided his team to wins in three of its last four games after a 0-6 start. 

Oaks Christian tied for third in the Marmonte League at 3-2, but holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over Newbury Park.

Aidan Crecion caught four passes for 119 yards and two TDs, Chase Evans caught two passes for 102 yards and two TDs, and MJ Watson ran for 100 yards and a TD on eight carries.  

Maximus Essien-Ete returned a fumble 45 yards on a score and Alifeleti Tuihalamaka had two sacks on defense. 

Ventura 35, Rio Mesa 16 

Gavin Scarlett completed 17 of 24 pases for 274 yards and three TDs as the Cougars (7-3) completed their regular season with a home win.  

Brody Torres returned from injury and caught four passes for 81 yards and two TDs, Jaddyn Delorenzo caught four passes for 96 yards and a TD, and freshman Rex Culp ran for two scores.

Ventura tied for third in the Channel League at 3-2, but Westlake holds the head-to-head tiebreaker for the final automatic playoff berth. The Cougars will hope for an at-large playoff bid when the playoff pairings are announced.

Oak Park 42, Oxnard 7 

Oak Park (7-3, 3-2) clinched the Coastal 101 League’s third automatic playoff berth on the road in a complete team victory. 

“Everybody did something,” Oak Park head coach Casey Webb said. “Everybody is really playing well right now.” 

Five different players scored as the Eagles piled up three TDs in each of the first two quarters. 

Quarterback Bryson Kennedy finished 13-for-26 passing for 228 yards and three TDs and rushed for another score. Gary Ferguson caught five passes for 117 yards and a TD. Nevada Ford rushed for 55 yards and a TD and caught a 15-yard TD pass. Luke Zapko carried the ball eight times for 89 yards and a TD and Quinn Bauman caught a TD pass.  

Linebacker Aaron Berro led the defense with nine solo tackles and two tackles for a loss. Christian Blake forced a fumble for the Eagles.  

Camarillo 48, Buena 18 

Brad Barlow completed 28 of 34 passes for 413 yard and three TDs and ran for two TDs as the Scorpions earned a home win.

David Sarti had six receptions for 149 yards and a TD. Diego Jaquez and Cruz Howe caught TD passes and Cary Kennington and Jakaylen Robinson ran for TDs for the Scorpions (5-5), who finished 2-3 in Coastal 101 League play.  

Christopher Slade ran for 59 yards and two TDs on 15 carries for Buena (0-10, 0-5). 

Royal 20, Hueneme 14 

The defense protected another gritty victory as Royal finished the regular season at 9-1 overall and second in the Tri-County League at 4-1 with a win in south Oxnard.  

“They are saving our butts every week,” Royal head coach Cody MacArthur said of his defense. “They have allowed us to make these mistakes we have been making and still get the win.” 

Linebacker Skylar Batchelor recovered a fumble in the end zone and defensive end Logan Rafiq had seven quarterback hurries, an interception and deflected a pair of passes.  

Royal running back Landon Schaffer (105 yards, TD) scored on a 50-yard run, then Batchelor’s defensive score put the Highlanders up 14-7 in the third quarter. Joey Salazar punched in a 3-yard rushing TD to secure the win. 

“We are gaining something out of (these close games),” MacArthur said. “We are not a team that gives up, ever.” 

Hueneme leaned into its passing game with starting quarterback Alex Bravo returning from injury. He completed 15 of 32 passes for 166 yards and a TD.

Joe Lopez caught eight passes for 91 yards, Wesley Hernandez caught a 15-yard TD pass and Kelechi Ofoego ran for a TD for the Vikings (1-9, 0-5). 

Del Sol 49, Santa Clara 14 

In what amounted to a playoff play-in game, Del Sol scored all 49 of its points in the first half and rolled to a lopsided home victory.

Thanks to a star senior’s big night.  

“It was the Chris Cazares show,” Del Sol head coach James Nelson said. 

Cazares caught a 65-yard TD pass on the first play of the game, then intercepted a Santa Clara pass attempt on the Saints’ first offensive play. He finished with four total scores, including two TD catches, a rushing TD and a 57-yard TD pass to Anthony Perez. 

Del Sol (4-6) finished third in the Citrus Coast League at 3-2 to secure a playoff berth in its second season as a varsity program.

Running back Hector Villasenor rushed for a 42-yard TD and quarterback Jayden Ramirez scored on an 80-yard keeper.

“They knew we had business to handle,” Nelson said. “They did their thing all night.” 

Running back Rudy Cerna scored on a pair of carries for the Saints (4-6, 0-5).

Grace 42, Channel Islands 10 

Grace relied on stingy defense to clinch the Citrus Coast League title outright at home. 

Landon LaSecla picked off a pair of passes and Reece Boyles returned a third interception for a touchdown. Linebacker Owen O’Neal piled up 16 tackles.  

“It was a complete game for us,” Grace head coach Tom Coate said.  

Senior Andrew Chavez scored a rushing TD in the first half and Francisco Marcial nailed a field goal in the fourth quarter for Channel Islands (2-8, 2-3).

The reigning Division 12 champion Lancers (8-2, 5-0) are eager to find out which playoff division they land in. 

“We are right on the edge,” Coate said. 

Nordhoff 41, Carpinteria 0 

Michael Dennie’s second game back as the Nordhoff starter was a doozy.  

The senior quarterback, who missed two games after fracturing his thumb during an Oct. 7 practice, threw for 370 yards and three TDs on 18-of-30 passing and rushed for a score as the playoff-bound Rangers (9-1, 4-1) finished second in the Citrus Coast League.

“Michael was super accurate,” Nordhoff head coach Dillon Lowen said. “It’s crazy what he is doing.” 

Brody Dvortcsak rushed for two TDs and caught a TD pass, Zeke Sheets caught four passes for 123 yards and a TD, Cooper Cole caught six passes for 127 yards, and Wyatt Siple had his first career TD reception.

Matthew Ruiz had an interception and Rea Duenas piled up 11 total tackles to lead the Rangers defense.

Santa Barbara 28, Thousand Oaks 14 

Luke Mayling ran for 95 yards and a TD on 18 carries and Trevor Kochel and Rowan Loth had interceptions as the Lancers ended their season 1-9 overall and 0-5 in the Channel League.  

Santa Barbara (7-3) clinched a share of the league title at 4-1. 

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Outright titles, shared crowns highlight Week 10 of football season