San Pedro’s Victory Comes on Final Play

Outside the Harbor area, a high school football matchup between San Pedro and Narbonne is not a big story.

In the area, however, there isn’t one bigger.

That was the case Friday night when San Pedro rallied on the game’s final play with a one-yard touchdown pass from Melvin Yarbrough to Antonio Bojorquez to defeat Narbonne, 16-14, before a capacity crowd at Daniels Field in San Pedro.

The winning touchdown was scored after Narbonne was called for pass interference in the end zone with no time remaining on the clock. Since a game cannot end on a defensive penalty, the Pirates made the most of the extra play. Yarbrough rolled right and was about to be tackled when he lofted a pass to the right corner in the back of the end zone to a wide-open Bojorquez.

In the first half, Narbonne dominated with touchdown runs by Austin Uku and Cameron Taylor. But San Pedro stayed close with a 36-yard field goal by Giuseppe Crachiolla and a 46-yard touchdown pass-play from Yarbrough to Bojorquez.

Narbonne (2-2) had chances to put the game away in the second half after leading, 14-10, at halftime. The Gauchos’ best opportunity came late in the fourth quarter when Brandon Manumaleuna intercepted a pass in San Pedro territory. Narbonne, however, was unable to capitalize when its drive was stalled because of three consecutive penalties.

San Pedro (4-0) began its final possession from its own 12-yard line and needed key catches from Steve Smith and Bojorquez to move into position for the winning touchdown.

Many who attended the game will remember the poor handling of the crowd more than game. More than 3,500 tickets were sold and hundreds--including many players’ parents--were turned away at 5 p.m. for a 7:30 kickoff.

“It’s unfair for people who bought their tickets ahead of time,” said Amanda White, a Narbonne student who listened to the game outside the stadium. “I bought mine on Tuesday and got to the game at 5:30 and couldn’t get in.”