Canyons Suffer Loss in Non-Conference Battle

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. – College of the Canyons suffered a tough loss against Saddleback College losing a non-conference matchup 44-26 on Saturday night at Cougar Stadium.

Despite the Cougar defense forcing three turnovers, the Gauchos were able to win the time of possession battle, total yards battle, and —unfortunately for the Cougars— the points battle, leading to the Cougars' fourth loss on the season.

Saddleback racked up 617 yards of total offense on the night while running 95 offensive plays. The pace of the game ended up being too much for COC to overcome.

The first quarter included back-and-forth action for both teams.

With COC trailing 7-0, COC quarterback Tony Dawson connected on a 13-yard pass to Jackson French. COC's extra point attempt was blocked, however, and the Cougars trailed 7-6.

Saddleback took a 14-6 lead, but COC responded before the end of the first quarter. COC linebacker Sean Bar recovered a muffed punt putting the Cougars deep inside Gaucho territory.

A four-yard Tony Dawson touchdown pass to Joshua Fuglsang cut Saddleback's lead and an Eric Kreitz extra point made the score 14-13. Dawson finished the game 8-for-15 for 63 yards and two touchdowns, to go with 42 rush yards.

Freshman quarterback Devon Dunn also saw action in the game, finishing 4-of-15 for 102 yards and one touchdown.

The Cougars were led in the ground game by running back Earl Johnson who gained 65 yards on nine carries.

Despite three first-half Saddleback fumbles, COC was not able to capitalize on the extra possessions. The Cougars would enter the half, trailing 24-13, and would have a difficult time making up the 11-point deficit.

Saddleback would score the next 23 points, putting the game out of reach for the Cougars by the start of the fourth quarter, as COC trailed 37-13 at that point.

COC wide receiver Tim White scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter – including a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown – capping off an impressive offensive performance.

White finished the game with six catches for 74 yards and a touchdown, and 146 return yards. French finished the game with two catches for 62 yards, including a long gain of 49 yards.

COC linebacker Kenneth Jacobs led the team with 12 total tackles and Austin Murillo added 11 total tackles.

Linebacker Garrett Updegraft shined on the defensive side of the ball. Updegraft was credited with six total tackles including a sack, a tackle for loss, and a forced fumble. 

Fellow linebacker Will Pretty also recorded nine tackles, including two for loss, to go with a forced fumble and fumble recovery.

The loss drops COC's record to 2-4 on the season with a 1-1 conference record.

After the bye week, COC will host conference rival Allan Hancock College at 4 p.m. Saturday Oct. 25, at Cougar Stadium.