Football Falls In Final Regular Season Game

Glendora, CA -- The Citrus College Football team, ranked #5 in Southern California, suffered just their third loss of the year on Friday evening, when they hosted SoCal #8 LA Harbor College. The Owls came out sluggish and the Seahawks took advantage as they defeated Citrus 36-21.

Citrus struggled in the first half as the Seahawks opened up the game by scoring 33 unanswered points. The Owls had their chances early on, but had a 28 yard field goal attempt blocked and turned the ball over twice in the first 30 minutes.

LA Harbor, who led the Central Conference in passing yards per completion, showed why on Friday evening as they torched the Owls through the air. The Seahawks passed for 270 yards, and averaged 16.9 yards per completion most of which came in the first half.

The Owls wouldn't get on the board until midway through the third quarter when freshman quarterback Bernard Porter found sophomore wide receiver Isaiah Kepley from 14 yards away. Citrus would score twice more in the fourth quarter, the first when Porter hit freshman Donovan Holmes for a seven yard score and the second when Porter connected with Kepley again this time from three yards away with seconds left on the clock.

The Citrus defense, which struggled in spots in the first half, nearly pitched a shutout in the second half, giving up just a 26 yard field goal early in the fourth quarter. It wasn't enough though as Citrus fell by 15.

In the loss, Porter was 16 for 23 for 179 yards and three TD's. Porter was also sacked three times and also threw two interceptions. Kepley was Porter's favorite target with a team high 75 yards for 2 TD's. With his two touchdowns and three extra points, Kepley brought his season scoring total to 108 points, the second highest total in program history.

On the defensive side of the ball freshman Maurice Dupleasis and sophomore Rodney Mathews each had a team high seven tackles. Of Mathews' seven tackles, two were solo, as he broke the single season record for solo tackles in one season with 48.

With the loss, Citrus falls to 7-3 on the year and 3-3 in Central Conference. The loss puts Citrus' bowl chances in question, despite them being bowl eligible. The Owls will found out if they get to participate in one more game on Sunday. CitrusOwls.com will have the latest information come Sunday afternoon.