Fullerton Takes Sole Possession of Pac-9 Lead, 31-0

Fullerton College moved into sole possession of first place in the Pac-9 Conference with a 31-0 victory over Pasadena City College Saturday night before 1,000 in Fullerton District Stadium.

The Hornets (4-1, 5-2) are one game ahead of Golden West, which lost to Cerritos, 24-21.

The Hornet defense registered its second shutout in three games. Last week, Fullerton limited Taft to only six points. The other shutout came against Bakersfield, 16-0.

The Lancers (2-3, 2-5) only managed 40 yards rushing, just six in the second half. Pasadena also turned the ball over four times, twice on fumbles and twice on interceptions.

After a scoreless first quarter, Hornet defensive end David Ziniga recovered a fumbled exchange in the Lancer backfield, giving Fullerton a first down on its own 44.

The Hornets overcame a holding call on their way to a 56-yard, six-play scoring drive. Fullerton fullback Dean Hankins scored from the one to give the Hornets a 7-0 lead with 11:59 left in the half.

Hankins scored again from the same distance later in the quarter to give Fullerton a 14-0 lead. The key play on the drive was a 57-yard pass play from freshman quarterback Richard Williams to Lewis Williams, Jr. The catch gave the Hornets a first down on the Pasadena 18.

Hankins scored his third touchdown on a one-yard run in the third quarter.

The leading rusher in the game was Reggie Newkirk, who had 62 yards on 3 carries. He had the longest run of the game, a 49-yarder on his second carry.

Fullerton held the Lancers’ leading rusher, sophomore Brenton Vann, to only 37 yards on 15 carries. He entered the game with 559 yards on 75 carries.

With the score 21-0 early in the fourth quarter, sophomore Mike Zorn replaced Richard Williams, who left the game after completing 14 of 26 for 182 yards. Williams threw no touchdown passes and was intercepted once.

Zorn only played one series but made it worthwhile. He connected on two of three attempts for 31 yards and a touchdown. The score came on a 15-yard pass to reserve wide receiver Aaron Grimm. Faced with a third and 11, Zorn found Grimm alone in the left corner of the end zone.

The last score of the game came on a 44-yard field goal by Todd Reynolds. The kick came after the Fullerton forced the Lancers to turn the ball over on downs. Pasadena tried three times to gain two yards, but could not.

The Lancers’ only real scoring threat came late in the first half. The dive reached the Fullerton 22 before Tom Inglima intercepted an Anthony Walker pass near the 5-yard line.

Inglima also intercepted a Walker pass in the first quarter.

In Mission Conference action:

Saddleback 30, Palomar 19--This was the first time the conference leading Gauchos (6-0, 8-0) had trailed at the half and their closest game of the season. Saddleback entered the game ranked second in the country and first in Southern California. The Comets (1-4, 3-4), despite leading the conference in total offense and total defense, entered the game tied for sixth.

The Comets scored their 19 points in a four-minute span in the second quarter, to lead 19-7 at halftime. Saddleback’s offense finally settled down in the second half and its defense held the Comets to just 55 yards passing and minus 1 yard rushing.

Fullback Roger Fickling became first Gaucho to rush for more than 100 yards this season, finishing with 138 yards on 27 carries. Quarterback Jason Schmid started slowly, but completed 10 of 14 attempts in the second half to finish 15 of 28 for 201 yards and three touchdowns. He threw two interceptions.

San Diego City 24, Orange Coast 14--Eight Pirate turnovers, including six fumbles and two interceptions, made the difference in the game. OCC (1-4, 1-5-1) fumbled on five of its first seven possessions. The most costly came late in second quarter when the Knights (1-4, 1-6). were leading, 14-7, and the Pirates were at the 3-yard line. But halfback Eric Johnston lost the ball. Two of the three Knight touchdowns followed Pirate turnovers. OCC felt the loss of halfback Chris Mendenhall, who had rushed for 115 yards on 16 carries when he was forced to leave with seven minutes left in the third quarter with an ankle injury. The loss was Pirate Coach Dick Tucker’s 100th. His career record is 128-100-5.

Rancho Santiago 55, Citrus 6--Silvio Delligatta completed 8 of 17 passes for 115 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Dons at Citrus. Two of Delligatta’s scoring passes went to Ed Nasser, who had five receptions for 50 yards.

Rancho Santiago’s other quarterback, John Cook, hit 4 of 5 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown. Kicker Darryl Willis was successful on all seven of his extra point attempts, giving him 27 straight. He also had field goals of 33 and 31 yards.

Rancho Santiago is 3-3 in conference and 5-3 overall, while Citrus is 2-3 and 2-5.