Breaks Fall Ventura’s Way as Cougars Salvage a Tie With Santa Barbara, 14-14

Good fortune squirted around like a wet football Thursday night at Ventura High’s Larrabee Stadium.

And luck landed in Ventura High’s hands after it had slipped through Santa Barbara’s fingers in a Channel League football game.

Santa Barbara players dropped a pair of potential touchdown passes and the Dons also missed a field goal and a point-after, enabling scrappy Ventura to escape with a 14-14 tie.

“We were lucky,” Ventura Coach Harvey Kochel said.

That’s because Santa Barbara (3-1-1 overall, 1-0-1 in league play), which had set up for a 44-yard field goal with eight seconds left, changed its mind after a timeout. Paco Andrade had missed a 23-yard field-goal attempt and a point-after conversion, so the Dons opted for a pass play that Ventura’s Billy Santino foiled when he swatted Dustin Spencer’s pass in the end zone with one second left.

“We didn’t want them to block it and return it,” Santa Barbara Coach Lito Garcia said.

Santa Barbara had better field position, but the Dons were pushed back to Ventura’s 27 when Brandon Evans sacked Spencer on third and eight from the 15.

“That was a big play,” Kochel said.

Santa Barbara should never have been in such dire straits. But slimy footballs and shaky hands can do that to a team.

The first miscue came with 11 minutes 38 seconds left and Santa Barbara leading, 14-7. The Dons were at Ventura’s 21-yard line and driving when a wide-open Robby Blakeney dropped what would have been a touchdown pass on fourth and three.

Then, before Evans’ sack, Santa Barbara drove to Ventura’s 15 and faced second and eight. Derek Elbert, considered one of the best tight ends in the league, was alone in the left side of the end zone when a throw from Spencer trickled through his hands.

“We definitely had our chances to win the game,” Garcia said.

Ventura (3-1-1, 1-0-1) didn’t rely on the Dons’ misfortunes the entire night. The Cougars, who fumbled the ball away twice, put together a 79-yard drive after Blakeney’s blunder.

Quarterback Jeff Dietz, who alternates series with Trevor Rumsey, hit tight end Brian Righetti for a 49-yard gain to Santa Barbara’s 19. On third and two from the 11, Jack Hammond (20 carries for 159 yards) carried for three yards and Dietz followed with a one-yard scoring run on third and goal. Rumsey added the conversion to tie the contest, 14-14, with 7:31 left.

“With that much time on the clock, we just wanted the (one-point conversion),” Kochel said.

Santa Barbara scored consecutive touchdowns to erase a 7-0 deficit and take a 14-7 lead at halftime.

Ventura used Santino’s interception to set up the game’s first score.

The Cougars drove 82 yards in 10 plays, including a 54-yard run by Hammond. Derek Swafford scored from one yard with 4:57 left in the first quarter.

Santa Barbara wasted a seven-minute, 73-yard drive when Andrade missed a 26-yard field-goal attempt.

Swafford fumbled the ball to Santa Barbara’s Alan Renga at the Cougars’ 31, and Santa Barbara took advantage of the miscue with a 27-yard touchdown run by Blakeney with 4:06 left in the first half.

Renga’s kick was wide left, leaving Santa Barbara with a 7-6 deficit.

After Ventura was forced to punt, Santa Barbara answered with a 77-yard scoring drive.

Spencer completed four consecutive passes, including one of 41 yards to Simon Banks. His final completion was a 10-yard touchdown strike to Banks.

Spencer added the conversion run, giving Santa Barbara a 14-7 lead with eight seconds left in the half.

In the first half, Santa Barbara outgained Ventura, 231-114, in total yards and had a 10-4 advantage in first downs.