Thousand Oaks Finds Air Attack in 28-6 Win

When Steve Sisco picks up the newspaper this morning to examine the football scores, he cannot help but be envious.

Sisco, you see, is the Thousand Oaks High quarterback. The Lancers, like most teams in the Marmonte League, are not generally known for their ability to throw the ball. Sisco dispelled such notions Friday night in a Marmonte League opener at Camarillo High as Thousand Oaks defeated the Scorpions, 28-6.

“I see these guys like Jeremy Leach at Granada Hills throw 35 times and just think, gee,” Sisco said. “But with Marc Monestime and Mike Moore in the backfield, there’s no need. As long as we have them, I’ll probably never throw 11 times again.”

Sisco, who had thrown 25 passes in his three previous games, completed 7 of 11 against Camarillo and threw for three touchdowns. Sisco has seven scoring passes this season--on only 21 completions.

Told his senior quarterback had thrown 11 passes, Thousand Oaks Coach Bob Richards said in jest: “We really open it up when we get into league, don’t we?”

Monestime carried 24 times for 112 yards to move into second place on the Ventura County all-time rushing list. The senior running back has 2,947 yards in his two-plus years and is 762 behind Hilria Johnson, who played from 1977 to 1979 for Channel Islands.

“It feels great,” Monestime said. “That was my goal at the beginning of the season, to keep moving up the list, hopefully to No. 1.”

The Thousand Oaks team, by virtue of its 4-0 record, keeps moving up many of the area lists. The Lancers are No. 3 in the Times’ Valley poll and the Southern Section Coastal Conference poll.

Camarillo, however, did not play like the unranked team it is. Thousand Oaks, the two-time defending league champion, had to score twice in the second half to secure its 10th consecutive league victory.

Sisco hit receiver Lance Alverson for a two-yard touchdown on the last play of the third quarter to give the Lancers a 21-6 advantage. The pass first tipped off the hands of teammate Mike Hutten. Alverson has caught a touchdown pass in six of his past seven games.

Thousand Oaks finished off Camarillo when Monestime scored from four yards out with 48 seconds remaining.

“This game was difficult and we expected it to be like that,” Richards said. “They have some very physical kids.”

Camarillo (1-3) broke on top when quarterback Donald Dodson found tight end Mark Mathis alone on the right side for a 25-yard touchdown in the second quarter. Dodson’s pass concluded a 92-yard drive that consumed 5:56.

The drive was aided when Thousand Oaks’ Anthony Gonzales was called for pass interference against wide receiver Gil Valencia on third-and-9 from the Thousand Oaks 31. Placekicker Sean Garcia missed the conversion attempt.

Thousand Oaks responded by getting its running game in gear. Monestime carried for 16 yards on four carries, then scored on a 27-yard screen pass from Sisco. John Mogler’s conversion kick put the Lancers ahead, 7-6.

On Camarillo’s next drive, Chris Gann intercepted his fourth pass of the year, this one on the Lancers’ 35, and returned it 38 yards. Six plays later, on third-and-11, Sisco threw his second touchdown pass, a 15-yarder to Alverson, for a 13-6 halftime lead.

Monestime carried 13 times in the first half for 64 yards. Sisco completed 4 of 7 passes for 65 yards.

Camarillo running back Bill Bell rushed for 31 yards in the half, and fullback Corey Hubbert had six carries for 43 yards. Bell rallied in the second half to finish with 87 yards.

Thousand Oaks has defeated Camarillo three consecutive times. The Scorpions’ last victory was a 41-0 decision in 1984, the season Camarillo won the Coastal Conference championship.