Rio Mesa Gives Thousand Oaks the Slip, 25-23

In a high school football game with only one turnover and three penalties, the biggest play of the night turned out to be a slip up.

With 54 seconds left in the first-round Coastal Conference playoff game between Thousand Oaks and Rio Mesa on Friday night at Thousand Oaks, the Lancer scored a touchdown on a one-yard dive by tailback Marc Monestime to cut Rio Mesa’s lead to 25-23.

Thousand Oaks lined up at the three-yard line to try for a two-point conversation that would have tied the game and probably sent it into overtime. Quarterback Dan Nagelmann rolled to his right. The Lancers flooded the right side with receivers.

Nagelmann spotted Chris Wilt breaking free. He threw a line drive, but Wilt slipped down before the ball got there, and Rio Mesa escaped with a 25-23 victory.

“All our receivers were open,” said Lancers Coach Bob Richards, “but the poor kid just fell down.”

The loss ended Thousand Oaks’ season at 7-4. Rio Mesa improved to 8-2-1 and moved on to the second round of the playoffs.

“It was a great high school football game,” said Spartans Coach John Reardon. “These are two fine teams.”

Right before the game, the Rio Mesa cheerleaders let loose a few dozen helium balloons, and as soon as the Spartans got on the field, they began to soar just as high. Rio Mesa jumped to a 14-0 first-quarter lead.

Quarterback Steve Carolan, only a junior, connected on his first pass on Rio Mesa’s opening drive. He hit Aaron Nordquist with a 42-yard bomb.

On their next possession, the Spartans scored again, going 55 yards on 10 plays, the last a one-yard run by running back Leonard Lee.

“We did not play with intensity on defense in the first half,” said Richards.

But the Lancers began to roll on offense. Even with Monestime bottled up, the Lancers managed to score, Joe Cruz running 25 yards for a score late in the opening quarter. Monestime, who led the Lancers in rushing during the season with 1,154 yards, had only three yards in the first quarter.

Thousand Oaks got a break in the second quarter when the Spartans fumbled at the Lancer goal line and Craig Clow recovered. The Lancers went to the Rio Mesa 10, aided by Monestime’s 36-yard run, and Mike O’Brien kicked a 27-yard field goal to cut the score to 14-10.

But the Spartans made up for their miscue. Darren Romano caught a short pass from Carolan, cut back to the sideline, and raced 55 yards to the Lancer seven. Two plays later, Lee went in from the one, and after Mike Runge’s conversion run, the Spartans led, 22-10, at halftime.

“We threw as well as we did because we ran the ball so well,” said Reardon.

In the second half, Richards said, “we had to go out and play football,” and the Lancers did. They held Rio Mesa to a 33-yard field goal by Todd Gamboa in the fourth quarter. Carolan, who had 91 yards passing in the first half, managed only 33 in the second.

Meanwhile, Monestime was breaking loose on screen passes. His 71-yarder on a third-and-16 made the score 22-17 with 9:54 left in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Lancers had third and seven and their 39 when Monestime took a screen 37 yards. Four plays later, he scored, and the Lancers were just a two-point try away from overtime.

Monestime finished with 87 yards rushing, 109 receiving. Romano led Rio Mesa with 76 yards on only two runs.