The Brahmas (2-3) home win streak was snapped in a 31-13 loss to the San Diego Mesa Olympians (4-1) at Shepard Stadium on Saturday, Sep. 30.
The Olympians put the pressure on the Brahmas scoring on their first drive with a Logan Vallo 12-yard rushing touchdown to give the Olympians a 7-0 lead.
Pierce responded quickly on the next drive. Running back Kyshawn Richards broke away for a 75-yard rush putting the Brahmas inside the Mesa 10-yard line. Richards scored from the 1-yard line two plays later to tie the game.
A missed field goal from each team was the extent of the offense until late in the second quarter.
The Olympians took the ball 80-yards in under three minutes, taking the lead on a Jack Akey 9-yard touchdown reception.
The Brahmas first possession of the second half started at their own 15-yard line following an Olympians punt. On third down Joseph Branch scored a 76-yard touchdown. The extra point was blocked, leaving Pierce trailing 14-13.
Mesa extended the lead on a 90-yard drive, finished off with Akey scoring his second touchdown of the game.
Ronnie Ochoa further extended the lead with a 23-yard field goal, bringing the score to 24-13.
The Brahmas would struggle to move the ball the rest of the game. Quarterback Jonathon Saavedra finished with four interceptions, including a pick-six by Jordan Gochenour that would cap off the 31-13 victory for Mesa.
Offensive coordinator John Austin attributed the Brahmas’ inability to maintain control of the ball to complacency following their win against Mt. San Jacinto College on Sept. 23.
“You have to have that drive and desire to get better every week. And, after San Jacinto, I think we kind of lost touch with that,” Austin said.
Interim Head Coach James Sims said that Mesa posed a challenge that the Brahmas had not yet faced this season.
“They played a good football game. There’s no excuses,” Sims said. “They shut us down offensively. No team has shut us down like that the entire season. We have to get back to the drawing board and get better.”
Mesa kept the Brahmas back in their territory for the remainder of the game.
Mesa ran out the clock 10 yards away from the end zone, ending the game with a score of 31-13.
Despite the loss, defense coordinator Dylan Flannery said that it acts as a lesson to the Brahmas to remain level-headed during games.
“We’re 2-3, and a lot of the guys on the team were acting like they were 4-0,” Flannery said. “Hopefully, this humbles them. We have the guys, we have the coaches, we have the talent and we have the steam. We just got to finish and make plays.”
The Brahmas are off next week and are back in action at Los Angeles Valley College on Saturday, Oct. 14.
