No. 5 Riverside Edges No. 4 Mt. San Antonio, 28-24, in Defense-dominated Game

RIVERSIDE -- Despite getting outgained by 150 yards, the Riverside City College (RCC) Tigers football team used a very opportunistic defense and timely special teams play to come from behind and shade the visiting Mt. San Antonio College (MSAC) Mounties, 28-24, in a National Central Conference (NCC) game Saturday evening (Oct. 25) at legendary Arthur N. Wheelock Stadium.

Riverside (6-1, 3-0 NCC) took its only lead with less than two minutes to play in a game which had all the appearances of a bowl game, even if it wasn't. RCC came into the game ranked No. 5 in the state (No. 3 SoCal), while MSAC was rated just a little higher at No. 4 in the state (No. 2 SoCal).

The Tigers picked off four errant MSAC aerials, recovered one fumble and had a 75-yard kickoff return to open the second half which eventually led to a 23-yard field goal by RCC freshman PK Jimmy Camacho (Citrus Hill HS) with 11:40 left in the third quarter to get to within 17-13. Camacho finished with three field goals (29, 23, and 41 yards) and a PAT kick.

Sophomore DB Treshon Broughton (Vista Murrieta HS) nabbed three of the interceptions, including a 45-yard TD return in the second quarter with 6:46 left to help forge a brief 10-10 tie.  

RCC made its move in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Mounties, 12-0. Sophomore RB Denzel Foster (Riverside / John W. North HS) capped an 12-play, 80-yard drive with a five-yard rushing touchdown to get the Tigers close at 24-22.

With 4:46 to play, RCC started a drive from the RCC 45. Foster capped a nine-play, 55-yard drive with a 19-yard TD scamper with 1:52 left in the game to give the Tigers a 28-24 lead.

Foster finished with 66 net rushing yards on 15 carries (4.4 avg.) and the two TDs, but RCC sophomore QB Nicholas King (Westchester HS) led the squad on the ground with 73 net rushing yards on 12 totes (6.1 avg.). King also completed 17 of 39 passes (zero interceptions) for 95 passing yards and was not sacked.

Sophomore WR Michael Stallone (Redlands HS) led with six receptions for 18 yards with a long of six yards.

Conversely, for the Mounties, sophomore QB Justin Alo (Carson HS) completed 22 of 39 passes (with four interceptions) for 300 yards and two TDs and was sacked three times. Sophomore WR Christopher Gilcrest (Charter Oak HS) had six catches for 93 yards and sophomore RB Omaris Tolbert (East Lee Co., FL) had 24 carries for 108 net rushing yards.

Defensively, RCC freshman LB AJ Hotchkins (Tigard, OR) had 13 total tackles (eight solo) and a forced fumble. Sophomore LB Jonah Moi (Citrus Valley HS) was next with 11 total tackles (seven solo), plus 1-1/2 tackles for loss, including one-half of a sack. 

Riverside returns to action on Saturday, Nov. 1, when it visits the Long Beach City College (LBCC) Vikings. Kickoff is 6 p.m. at Veterans Stadium. LBCC was ranked No. 3 in the state, but No. 1 in SoCal heading into this week's action. In the all-time series, which dates to 1929, RCC trails, 10-14-1, but has won the last five meetings, including a 42-28 home win over LBCC in 2013.

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