Pirates fall to Gauchos in season finale; Whitaker sets new school passing record

MISSION VIEJO -- The Orange Coast College football team wrapped up the 2016 season with a 28-21 road loss to Saddleback College on Saturday night.

Kody Whitaker threw for 241 yards and a touchdown on 22-of-43 passing, while Derrick Hunt rushed for 145 yards and a TD on season-high 31 carries for the Pirates (3-7, 1-4 in Southern Conference). James Rutledge was OCC's top pass-catcher with six receptions for 104 yards, while Joey Cox added six catches for 51 yards and a touchdown.

For the Gauchos (9-1, 4-1), Nick Robinson threw for 245 yards and two TDs on 15-of-22 passing, while running back Edward Vander rushed for 183 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries. Remy Wasserbach caught a team-best five passes for 90 yards.

Saddleback got on the scoreboard first when Robinson hooked up with Marvin Marshall on a 16-yard touchdown, capping off a six-play, 70-yard scoring drive for a 7-0 lead for the Gauchos.

OCC evened the score at 7 after grinding out a 13-play, 75-yard drive that took nearly seven minutes to complete. Hunt plowed in from a yard out on fourth down to bring the Pirates even with the Gauchos late in the first quarter.

After the Coast defense forced a Saddleback punt, the Pirates again found the end zone when Whitaker hooked up with Cox on a 16-yard TD connection, putting OCC up, 14-7, early in the second quarter.

Coast had another long drive (10 plays, 40 yards), but the Pirates stalled on the Saddleback 36-yard line and just six plays later, Saddleback tied the game at 14 on a 9-yard TD run by Marshall.

Saddleback took possession on the opening drive of the third quarter and wasted no time as Robinson connected with Deondre Moore on a 69-yard TD pass on the first play from scrimmage, putting the Gauchos back out in front, 21-14.

It remained 21-14 until midway through the fourth quarter, when Edward Vander capped off a nine-play, 83-yard drive for the Gauchos with a 9-yard TD run, giving the hosts a 28-14 advantage.

A 1-yard TD run by Whitaker with 1:15 left in the game gave the Pirates a final shot at evening the game, but the ensuing onside kick bounced out of bounds, giving Saddleback the ball and the win.

The season finale ends the OCC career of several sophomores on this year's squad, including Whitaker, who set a new school record for career passing yards with 4,079, surpassing Jared Flint's 1998-99 total of 4,003. Whitaker also becomes the first OCC player in school history with over 4,000 yards of total offense, finishing his career with 4,117, topping Flint's two-year total of 3,716.