Mameev kicks GCC to victory

Edgar Melik-Stepanyan

The Glendale Community College football team had no business being so

close to West L.A. after the first quarter of Saturday’s Western

State Conference Southern Division game.

The Vaqueros had minus-24 yards of total offense in the opening 15

minutes and didn’t record a first down until the second quarter. But

they trailed by two at the end of the first quarter and were down by

just five at halftime.

Fortunately for GCC, it had Evgeni Mameev and the Oilers lacked an

offense, for the most part.

Despite mustering 31 yards of total offense through two quarters,

GCC prevailed with a 17-15 victory at Culver City High to improve to

2-2, 1-1 in the division.

Vaquero Coach John Cicuto explained GCC’s resurgence in the second

half this way.

“All of a sudden we started to make things happen,” he said. “They

got confident and they got excited.”

And they turned to quarterback Steve Martinez, who did just what

GCC offensive coordinator John Rome wanted, and that was to sustain

long drives.

Martinez, a freshman from L.A. Wilson High, replaced a struggling

Kenneth McDaniel in the third quarter and quickly went to work.

Chris Berroud’s 14-yard touchdown run with 14:28 left in the

fourth quarter gave GCC an 11-8 lead. Berroud had minus-three yards

rushing in four carries in the first half, but the sophomore finished

with 93 yards in 20 carries.

“We all came together,” Berroud said. “In the first half, we were

all unfocused and we brought it together in the second half.”

GCC opted to kick the ball to Oiler speedster Solomon Jones on the

ensuing kickoff, and the Vaqueros almost lost the game because of

their decision. Jones returned the kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown,

as West L.A. retook the lead.

“I should have squibbed kick,” Cicuto said. “That was my fault.”

Mameev helped the Vaqueros redeem themselves.

His 32-yard field goal, his third of the day, with 2:10 remaining

provided the game’s final score, and GCC’s defense took care of the

rest.

The Vaqueros forced the Oilers to turn the ball over on downs on

their final drive.

“For four weeks in a row, our defense has met the challenge,” said

Cicuto, whose team allowed 252 yards of total offense.

Martinez certainly met the challenge, as well. He completed five

of seven passes for 86 yards.

“Coach just told me to stay ready the whole game,” Martinez said.

“I knew there was a chance I was going to go in.

“I was just trying to keep the chain moving and keep [our] defense

off the field.”

Cicuto said Martinez will replace McDaniel as the starting

quarterback when the Vaqueros play East L.A. at 1 p.m. Saturday at

Moyse Field.