Pirates wrangled by Rustlers in Battle for the Bell
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Orange Coast (2-6) | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
|
Golden West (4-4) | 13 | 7 | 9 | 27 | 56 |
HUNTINGTON BEACH -- The Orange Coast College football team's first experience on the new Golden West College field was one to forget as the Pirates lost to the host Rustlers, 56-13, on Saturday in the 50th Annual Battle of the Bell Game.
Winners of the Bell for the sixth time in seven years, the Rustlers (4-4, 2-1 in the National Southern League) racked up 636 yards of total offense, including 473 passing yards as the big guns for GWC were too much for the Pirates (2-6, 1-2) to overcome.
While the Rustlers were ruling the skies, Coast struggled to find offensive success in the air and was held to just 112 passing yards. The quarterback tandem of Nathan West and Ayden Auer combined for 11-of-28 passing with a pair of late interceptions with receiver Rexford Demazeliere (four catches, 63 yards) having the most success.
On the ground, running back Nico Jackson rushed for 97 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns on 15 carries.
Coast trailed 20-7 at the half, but had the ball inside the Rustlers' 35-yard line to start a drive early in the third quarter. The drive stalled, however and the instead of chipping into the deficit, Rustler quarterback Joe Pyle hooked up with Brailon Mouton on a 71-yard touchdown strike three plays later, putting GWC up 27-7.
The Pirates had their best drive of the game on their next possession and capped off a nine-play, 62-yard scoring drive with a 3-yard TD run by Jackson to make it 27-13. But, on the point-after-attempt, Corey Lewis' kick banked into a pile of bodies near the goal line and the ball was picked up by GWC's Dudsen Senatus, who scored on the 2-point run for the Rustlers, making it 29-13.
From there, it was all Golden West as the Rustlers outscored Coast, 27-0, in the fourth quarter.
The Pirates will return to action on Saturday against Fullerton College (at Yorba Linda High School), beginning at 1 p.m.
