Kiyomi Kikuchi
Due to their opponent’s overwhelming power and a superior number of players, the Pierce College football team was destroyed by Antelope Valley College, 54-7 in front of numerous opponents’ spectators at Quartz Hill High School football stadium Saturday afternoon.
Antelope Valley is the number one team in the American Pacific Conference. Also, it beat Pierce, 72-0, two years ago.
One minute into the game, Antelope Valley made a touch down from the 35 yard lines and made a field goal six minutes later. Pierce free safety Marquis Brown intercepted the ball, but it didn’t turn it into the score -setting Pierce behind 10-0 in the first.
“We were playing real good football at first,” said Pierce football head coach Efrain Martinez. “Our defense was hanging in there.”
Pierce had a big chance in the middle of the second quarter when Pierce recovered a fumble and ran it to the 10 yard line. However, Pierce missed the chance when Antelope Valley blocked the field goal attempt.
Antelope Valley made three touchdowns – 2- yard run, 55-yard pass and 46 yard field goal in the second quarter, further widening the score gap to 27-0.
After Antelope Valley scored another touch down, making the score 34-0, Pierce wide-receiver Patrick Donahue made a completion on a 35 -yard pass from quarterback Taylor Budd, resulting in a touch down. However, after the touch down, Antelope Valley broke through Pierce’s defenses to score two touchdowns -17- yard pass and 9-yard pass to set the score at 40-7.
Antelope Valley made two more touch downs -11 yard run and 14 yard run in the fourth quarter, sealing their victory at 54-7.
“We just couldn’t move the ball on them and after a while their power just took over,” Martinez said, “We just got real tired. We didn’t have any real substitutes.”
“They (Pierce) have a good football team, but they haven’t gotten in some game,” said Antelope Valley head coach.
“The defense did alright we did. We can’t really do much when we’re not on the field,” Pierce defensive lineman Daniel Powers. “It kind a gets old-losing on the field.”
“I feel like….We just need stuff together,” Donahue said.
At 2-4 in conference, Pierce will go on to face Santa Monica College for the last season game in the Pierce College football stadium at 7 p.m. next Saturday.
()