Vaqueros rush past Compton 41-6 for third straight win

SBCC rushed for a season-high 318 yards and four touchdowns on Saturday in a 41-6 football rout at El Camino-Compton Center.

Demetrius Vinson piled up 148 yards on 15 tries for a 9.9 average. The freshman from Modesto got his first collegiate touchdown with 2:59 to play when he weaved through the defense for a 17-yard score. The Vaqueros produced 14 runs of 10 or more yards and Vinson had eight double-digit carries.

Emmanuel Nwosu added 95 yards and a 33-yard TD on just seven carries (13.6 average). Cedric Cooper produced 78 yards and scored the Vaqueros' first two TDs on runs of 6 and 9 yards.

Santa Barbara (3-1) won its third straight game, despite playing without its leading rusher and the state's top scorer, Perry Martin, who was injured last week. Compton fell to 0-4.

"We knew going into this game, we couldn't worry about our opponent, just ourselves," said Cooper. "We had to pick up the slack for Perry. Our offensive line is impressive. They open things up and without them, we wouldn't be able to do any of this good rushing."

The Vaqueros are second in the State in scoring at 44.3 per game and No. 1 in State rushing (263.0 yards) and rushing TDs (15). In the last three games, they've rushed for 274, 308 and 318 yards.

The Vaqueros outran the Tartars 162 to minus 2 in the first half and took a 20-0 lead on a 2-yard pass from Noah Holle to Jacob Ortale with 1:10 to go in the second quarter.

"We weren't as sharp as I'd hoped we'd be but we still did a lot of good things," said 10th-year head coach Craig Moropoulos. "We're running the ball very effectively. I wasn't happy to see us throw an interception on our first possession. And the worst part was Graham getting hurt."

Joshua "Graham" Lindman threw the interception at the Compton 13 and suffered an injury on the return. He was on crutches in the second half. All-State offensive tackle Isaac McClain also suffered an injury.

SBCC's defense was strong, holding Compton to 42 rushing yards with three interceptions, a blocked punt and seven sacks. Dallas Martin had a team-high 10 tackles, Tony Anderson blocked a punt in the fourth quarter (his third block of the year) to set up the final TD, and Luigi Dorzin had seven tackles and 3.5 sacks.

The Vaqueros have blocked seven kicks in the first four games (two punts, three field goals and two PATs).

Interceptions by Nakota Shepard-Creer and Thomas Lash led to the Vaqueros' second and third TDs as they drove 85 and 25 yards, respectively.

The Vaqueros took the second-half kickoff and went 76 yards in 11 plays with Cooper running 5 times for 46 yards. Holle hit Ortale again for a 1-yard TD pass that made it 27-0. Holle was 8-12 for 101 yards and two TDs.

Compton avoided the shutout by marching 96 yards in 21 plays at the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth. Johnny Bailey scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak to cap the 8 minute, 37-second drive that was aided by penalties of holding and pass interference on the Vaqueros. The PAT failed and the Vaqueros led 27-6.

SBCC responded with a quick score. Jason-Matthew Sharsh returned the kickoff 31 yards to his 46-yard line. Four plays later, the 6-foot, 220-pound Nwosu sprinted up the middle for a 33-yard TD.

The Vaqueros will play their final nonconference game on Saturday when they host College of the Desert at 4 p.m.