Northwood Falls in Final Two Minutes

Santa Monica St. Monica scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to erase a 14-point deficit and defeat Northwood, 15-14, Saturday at Playa Del Rey St. Bernard High.

Mariner running back Phillip Minter scored on a seven-yard run with 1 minutes 12 seconds remaining in the game to cut the Timberwolves’ lead to 14-13.

St. Monica went for a two-point conversion, and Ben Agatep scored when the Mariners lined up in an overloaded formation, with only the quarterback and center on the right side of the formation. Agatep then took the long snap and got to the end zone, beating the two defenders on the left side of a confused Northwood defense.

The Mariners (1-2) didn’t get on the scoreboard until 6:06 remained when Agatep threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Shelby and St. Monica trailed, 14-7.

The Timberwolves (1-2) started the game on a strong note, driving 92 yards in eight plays on their opening possession to take a 7-0 lead. Brian Sipkovich caught a 28-yard touchdown pass from Dan Tomcheck for the Timberwolves’ first score.

Midway through the second quarter, Kyle Keating gave Northwood a 14-0 lead on a three-yard touchdown run. Dave Anderson set up the scoring drive with the first of his two interceptions.

Tomcheck completed 15 of 29 passes for 169 yards and Sipkovich caught four passes for 69 yards. Minter had 109 yards rushing in 17 carries and Shelby caught four passes for 88 yards.