Red-zone turnovers cost Ventura College in SoCal football semifinals

The calculation was simple for Steve Mooshagian. 

Three turnovers inside the 5-yard line equaled the end of the Ventura College football season. 

“You don’t have to be a math major to figure that one out,” the Ventura College head coach said. “That’s 21 points that you left on the field.”

Despite three touchdown passes from quarterback Samuel Marquez, the No. 4 Pirates fell to top-seeded Riverside, 47-32, on Saturday afternoon in the Southern California semifinals at San Bernardino Valley College. 

Marquez completed 20 of 35 passes for 245 yards, three touchdowns and one interception and JQ Brown ran for 147 yards on 13 carries as the SCFA Northern Conference champion Pirates (7-4) piled up 456 yards of total offense.

Sophomore receiver Tim Grear caught five passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns and sophomore receiver Kevin Tate caught eight passes for 84 yards and a score for VC. 

VC led 14-13 in the first quarter and was twice within one score in the second half, but the comeback was detoured by an interception in the end zone in the second quarter, a fumble on the Riverside 5 early in the fourth quarter and an interception in the end zone late in the fourth quarter. 

“We had a chance, but the turnovers … took its toll,” Mooshagian said. “We gave them everything they could ask for. I’m very proud of our guys through all the adversity they faced.” 

The turnovers made it impossible to keep up with a Riverside offense that pilled up 666 yards of total offense and 36 first downs. 

Jake Retzlaff completed 27 of 37 passes for 402 yards and six touchdowns as Riverside (11-0) advanced to play Fullerton (10-1) in this week’s Southern California championship. 

“He was definitely a difference-maker,” Mooshagian said of Retzlaff. “He’s going to break all their records.” 

Cornerback James Tuayamie had 13 tackles, a forced fumble and a pass breakup, safety CJ Hodgdon had 10 tackles and a fumble recovery, and safety Tyrus Malietufa had a fumble recovery to lead the VC defense. 

Marquez, the freshman from Oxnard High who rose from fourth string to lead the Pirates to wins in their final three games, hit Tim Grear for a 21-yard TD pass and scored on a 1-yard TD run to give VC a 14-13 lead with 1:58 left in the first half. 

“That was a pretty even ballgame,” Mooshagian said. “That was the game we expected it to be.”

But Retzlaff threw four TD passes to build a 33-17 Riverside led at the half. 

Marquez’s 26-yard TD pass to Kevin Tate, followed by his conversion pass to Grear, pulled VC within 33-25 with 11:18 left in the third quarter. 

Marquez’s 19-yard TD pass to Grear again pulled VC within 40-32 with 1:56 left in the third quarter. 

The Pirates were on the cusp of tying the game when Keaton Allen punched the ball out of the hands of a VC ballcarrier on the Riverside 5 with 12:05 to play. 

Six plays later, Retzlaff found Norbert Espadron for a 39-yard scoring strike for a 47-32 Riverside cushion.  

“It’s one of those things,” Mooshagian said. “We battled. The kids played hard, never quit. We just didn’t make the plays when we needed them in the key moments.”

Joe Curley covers professional, college and high school football for The Star. He can be reached at joe.curley@vcstar.com. For more coverage, follow @vcscolleges on Twitter.