Effective on both sides of the ball, the Brahmas beat the undefeated LA Harbor College Seahawks on Saturday night.
Pierce got the win over Harbor 17-2 in the first win for acting head coach Anthony Harris.
“We’re such a better team than our record is,” Harris said. “I think our structure and organization over the last couple of weeks and getting our plays in [got] the guys really believing in themselves.”
Receivers coach John Austin credited the win to the Brahmas’ defense strategy.
“Defense played a perfect game,” Austin said. “They played turnovers fundamentally sound. They played smart today–no mental errors.”
Harris plans to build on the high morale from this win.
“When you have success, you feel good about yourself, and when you feel good about yourself, you start to practice better,” Harris said. “You start to pay closer attention to the details.”
The Brahmas’ lead began with a field goal by kicker Juan Perez during the first quarter.
During the second quarter, a 37-yard touchdown from quarterback David McCullum to wide receiver Brandon Brock brought Pierce’s lead up to 10-0.
Defense continued their lights out strategy, preventing the Seahawks from completing passes. Defensive back Eric Best intercepted a pass with two minutes left in the second quarter.
Harris said the defense was instrumental in the Brahmas’ win.
“Our defense had been playing lights out and we got shut out tonight,” Harris said. “We’re really proud of them for that.”
The first half ended with the Brahmas attempting a 47-yard field goal, which was wide to the left. The score remained 10-0 at the half.
During the third quarter, an offside penalty, a holding penalty and a fumble held back the Brahmas. Austin and strength and conditioning coach Dylan Flannery cited penalties as an issue the team needs to work on going forward.
In the last few minutes of the third quarter, a touchdown from quarterback Andrew Young to wide receiver Kareem Miles brought the Brahmas’ lead up by 17 points.
Incomplete passes by the Seahawks maintained the Brahmas’ lead going into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Seahawks gained safety points after running back Kevin Ascencio was tackled in Pierce’s end zone.
The Brahmas’ next game will be against Allan Hancock College, a tough opponent according to Flannery.
“It’s going to just come down to heart because [Hancock is] going to try to take the will out of you,” Flannery said. “They’re gonna try to beat you down and that’s when they usually start separating with the score. So we’ll see what kind of heart our guys have this coming week.”
Following this win, the Brahmas’ record is 2-6. They will travel to Santa Maria on Saturday to face the Allan Hancock Bulldogs. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.