Week 8 high school football roundup: Thousand Oaks beats Moorpark late to stay unbeaten

Twenty-one years later, the Thousand Oaks High football team has finally earned its next league championship.

Make that 21 years and one improbable comeback for the formerly downtrodden program.

Three seasons after finding itself amid a 25-game losing streak, the Lancers clinched a share of the Canyon League championship with a hard-fought, 24-17 victory over visiting Moorpark on Friday night.

Perhaps fittingly, it required another dramatic rally. Thousand Oaks trailed 17-14 late in the fourth quarter.

Senior quarterback Travis Endicott drove his team 85 yards in the closing minutes, culminating in a 9-yard touchdown toss to Andrew Simon Lacombe with 20 seconds remaining for the winning score.

Not only is Thousand Oaks a league champion, its closing in on its first undefeated season since 1989. The Lancers are 8-0 overall, 5-0 in league and will complete its Canyon League schedule this Friday night at Agoura.

Third-year coach Evan Yabu revels in the achievement.

"It's crazy, almost hard to believe and such a credit to the players," said Yabu, himself a Thousand Oaks alum. "It's been a magical season and what we'd like to do next in finish undefeated going into the playoffs."

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Endicott finished 15 of 27 for 223 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. Will Halub had six receptions for 95 yards and one touchdown.

Johnny Abarzua was among the key heroes on the winning drive, hauling in two receptions for 57 yards.

The Lancers defense, led by Chase Martin, yielded 211 yards, with 154 rushing and 57 passing.

Martin notched 16 tackles, including 11 solos and two tackles for losses. Brolin Harrhad had seven tackles, six solos, three tackles for losses and two sacks.

The victory didn't come without controversy.

On the possession prior to the winning march, Endicott was intercepted near the goal line by Jayden Gray. It was the sophomore's second pick of the game.

After corralling the tipped pass, Gray stepped into the end zone, where he was tackled. The referee ruled a safety, much to the chagrin of Moorpark's players and coaches.

"Under the high school rules, that's either a touchback or our ball at the 1 1/2-yard line," said Moorpark coach Ryan Huisenga. "(Gray's) momentum took him into the end zone. He wasn't facing the field. He was looking toward the back of the end zone."

Said Thousand Oaks' Yabu: "It's a tough call, a judgement call. I understand how some people will say his momentum carried him into the end zone. Obviously, we were on the positive side of that call. All we could do was play on."

The safety narrowed Moorpark's lead to 17-16. With the subsequent free kick, Thousand Oaks found itself at its own 15-yard line with under two minutes on the clock.

Yabu loved his team's poise.

"We've been in this situation before, like against Newbury Park," he said. "In that game, it seemed like we were a little nervous at the end, a lot sweaty.

"This time, everybody seemed calm and poised. They were ready for the moment."

Moorpark is in the middle of its own gritty comeback this season after finishing 1-9 a season ago.

The Musketeers stand 5-3, including 2-2 in the Canyon League, and can earn its own playoff spot with wins over Camarillo and Agoura the next two weeks.

"It was a great effort by our guys, who played with physicality and mental toughness," said Huisenga. "I could not be prouder of our players.

"We made mistakes — really both teams did — but we put ourselves in a position to win the game late."

Huisenga expects his players to rebound swiftly.

"We have a 48-hour rule, win or lose," said the coach. "It's a tough loss, but I know our guys will show up for Monday practice ready to work."

Connor Smith finished 12 of 21 for 92 yards passing, and rushed for 100 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. Luke Cochran ran for 115 yards on 22 carries.

CAMARILLO 39, OAK PARK 29

Brody Meyer completed 17 of 30 pass attempts for 272 yards and one touchdown while also rushing for another score and Nathaniel Madrigal ran for 55 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries as the Scorpions (6-2) improved to 3-1 in Canyon League play.

Robert Trey Valles rushed for 88 yards and one touchdown and also had 10 tackles on defense. Griffin Addison caught seven passes for 169 yards and Jack Maulhardt had two catches for 20 yards and a touchdown and also had eight tackles.

Ashley McMichael went 5 for 5 on PATs and hit a 25-yard field goal.

On defense, Jackson Walea notched 10 tackles, three tackles for losses and one sack, Ryan Johnson had eight tackles and one sack, and Reese Winchester had an interception.

For Oak Park, Kadyn Parr completed 23 of 43 attempts for 298 yards and two touchdowns and Landon Holmes had six catches for 102 yards and a pair of scores.

Lucas Soaras Gache led the defense with nine tackles. Riley Braddock had six tackles and one sack.

Camarillo will host Moorpark on Friday. Oak Park plays at Newbury Park.

ROYAL 28, AGOURA 21

Evan Nagy completed 16 of 22 pass attempts for 175 yards and two touchdowns and Gunner Osborne rushed for 86 yards and two scores on 15 carries as the visiting Highlanders picked up their first Canyon League win with a fourth-quarter rally.

Kareem Barakat had two catches for 63 yard and one touchdown, Jack Obacz notched four catches for 68 yards and Owen Muench had eight catches for 25 yards and one touchdown.

Mateo Martinez had six tackles and Issac Zachariah and Sebastian Shahpoor had five tackles apiece.

Royal (4-5, 1-4) has a bye this week. Agoura (1-7, 0-4) is home against Thousand Oaks.

VENTURA 53, CHANNEL ISLANDS 0

Dylan Garcia ran for 152 yards and three TDs and Esteban De Santiago ran for two TDs as the Cougars rushed for 320 yards and six scores.

Logan Scarlett completed 7 of 10 passes for 130 yards and TDs to Josh Woodworth and Joseph Pena for Ventura (5-4), which improved to 4-3 in Channel League play.

Channel Islands (0-9, 0-6) was shut out for the fourth straight game.

Daniel Ortega had eight tackles and sack and Brian Cabrera, Francisco Tzintzun and Treeden Bautista had seven tackles apiece and Aaron Byrd also had a sack to lead the Raiders defense.

OXNARD 46, SAN MARCOS 14

Poni Maria threw for four TD passes and Elijah Davis had a pivotal 94-yard kickoff return for a score as the Yellowjackets (4-4) improved to 2-4 in Channel League play.

“With all the distractions of homecoming, we knew we needed to focus,” Oxnard coach Jaime Moreno said. "(Davis’ return) really jump-started us.”

Isaiah Dillon had two TD catches, Elijah Aragon had a 26-yard TD catch and Marcus Mendez had a 9-yard TD catch for Oxnard, which scored the final 24 points after visiting San Marcos pulled within 21-14 in the third quarter.

Diego Velasco added a 3-yard TD run. Maria completed 13 for 18 passing for 118 yards.

Oxnard visits Gonzales Road rival Pacifica on Friday.

OAKS CHRISTIAN 52, WESTLAKE 7

Justice Williams hauled in seven receptions for 125 yards and two touchdowns and Nate Bennett completed 28 of 35 attempts for 404 yards and four touchdowns as the Lions remained undefeated in the Marmonte League.

Jalen Lewis had a 51-yard scoop and score, Johnny Thompson rushed for 110 yards and Deshonne Rideaux ran for 91 yards and one touchdown.

Chase Farrell and Stevie Amar also caught scoring passes.

Oaks Christian (6-2, 3-0) plays at Simi Valley on Friday. Westlake (2-6, 0-3) will play at Bishop Diego on Saturday.

FILLMORE 41, CARPINTERIA 7

On the road in rainy, muddy Carpinteria, the high-flying Flashes offense showed they can also pile up yards and points on the ground.

Nico Virto had 104 yards and a TD on 15 carries and Nate Torres had 90 yards and two TDs on 10 carries as Fillmore (6-2) improved to 2-0 in the Citrus Coast League.

“That was a great part of (the game),” Fillmore coach Charlie Weis said. “We went into the week planning on getting our running back game. … And it poured, it was one of the wettest games I’ve ever coached.”

Jarod Uridel ran for a score and caught a TD pass, sophomore Jojo Cruz set up a score with a 63-yard run and Joseph Perez also ran for a score as Fillmore rushed for 306 yards and five TDs rushing.

The Flashes, who have outscored their last four opponents 186-13, visit Hueneme on Friday for a first-place showdown.

SANTA PAULA 51, NORDHOFF 7

Bryce Zavala caught two TD passes from Marcus Castaneda and Allen Macias ran for two touchdowns as the Cardinals (6-3) improved to 2-1 in Citrus Coast League play.

Justen Zamudio returned a punt 60 yards for a touchdown and Timmy Alvarez added a TD run for Santa Paula, which now enters a bye week ahead of its Week 10 rivalry clash at Fillmore.

“We take a little bit of momentum into the rivalry game,” Santa Paula coach Mike Montoya said. “We take the bye week to get our bumps and bruises taken care of and it’s onto the big one.”

Austin Wheatley threw a 43-yard TD pass to Sol McGarey for Nordhoff (0-9), which will finish its season Friday against visiting Carpinteria.

BISHOP DIEGO 48, CALABASAS 21

Jerry McGee and Aaron Butler caught touchdown passes, including McGee's 80-yard hookup from Alonzo Contreras, but the Coyotes fell to the visiting Cardinals.

Calabasas moves to 5-3 overall and 1-2 in the Marmonte League and will play host to St. Bonaventure on Friday.

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This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Week 8 high school football roundup: Thousand Oaks remains unbeaten