Football Tabbed as 2023 National Northern League Co-Champs after High Scoring Showdown at El Camino

TORRANCE, Calif. - The Allan Hancock College football team got the job done on Saturday evening during a road trip to El Camino College, 55-45, in a must-win scenario to keep the league title dream alive. AHC now leads the all-time series, 5-2, which dates back to the first matchup between the two programs in 2001. | BOX SCORE

The Bulldogs entered the game with a 5-1 record, placing them one game behind the league-leading Ventura College Pirates and one game ahead of El Camino in the race for a playoff spot. Hancock's win, combined with Ventura's loss to Canyons, secured AHC a share of the National Northern League title for the second consecutive season. 

ALLAN HANCOCK (7-3, 6-1) vs EL CAMINO (6-4, 5-2)

QUARTER 1: ALLAN HANCOCK 7 | EL CAMINO 6

El Camino fumbled on the opening kickoff, which led to a recovery by Hancock's Nolan Oslin at the 35-yard line. The Bulldogs put together six straight rushing attempts and ended the possession with a five-yard scoring scamper by Jackson Clavel and a successful PAT try by Arath Acosta. 

The Warriors responded with a scoring drive of their own on the ensuing drive but continued to trail by one after the point-after attempt was blocked. 

QUARTER 2: ALLAN HANCOCK 21 | EL CAMINO 19

Hancock's defense forced a quick three-and-out punt to open the second frame after Daron Lewis Jr. and Zekiel Seumalo pushed the Warriors back to a 4th-and-23 scenario from their own end zone. Makai Puga set the visiting crew up with a short field after registering a 23-yard return on the punt. Hancock needed just four plays to punch through the goal line on a possession that ended with a five-yard scurry by John Allen. 

El Camino answered once more after a 52-yard rush, a five-yard touchdown pass, and a successful two-point conversion attempt brought the game to a 14-14 tie. 

Both teams put together two more scoring drives apiece before the halftime break. Caden Harris led the Bulldogs to two touchdowns after finding the end zone on two separate 60+ yard rushes while EC scored on a short touchdown pass and a successful field goal try from 31 yards out. 

QUARTER 3: ALLAN HANCOCK 14 | EL CAMINO 7

Hancock opened the second half with a three-play scoring drive that spanned 70 yards and concluded with a 69-yard touchdown completion from AJ Vele to Kollins Pettaway. Coach Aguilar's squad extended the lead midway through the quarter after Salofi Leasiolagi recovered an EC fumble. That possession, which needed just 36 yards to score, ended with a one-yard scamper by Allen. 

El Camino found the end zone in the final minute after stringing together eight plays on a drive that closed with a 27-yard touchdown pass, cutting the deficit back to 10. 

QUARTER 4: ALLAN HANCOCK 13 | EL CAMINO 13

The Bulldogs opened the final frame with another scoring possession that was highlighted by a 24-yard rush from Harris and a 41-yard completion from Clavel to Pettaway. Clavel found Alex Sutton for a seven-yard completion in the end zone to close the drive. 

The Warriors answered just two minutes later with an eight-play drive that ended in a nine-yard pass to the end zone, bringing the game back to a 10-point differential, before Harris broke free on the ensuing trek with a 24-yard rushing past the goal line. 

El Camino built one final scoring drive with under five minutes to go after using 10 plays to cover 81 yards, but Hancock managed to close out the win after recovering an onside kick and securing a first down on a 22-yard rush by AJ Masunu following the touchdown.   

LEADERS

Tackles: JaTe'vius Franklin - 9 / Aaron Small Jr. - 8
Receptions: Kollins Pettaway - 3 / Elias Martinez - 2
Receiving Yards: Kollins Pettaway - 118 (1 TD)
Rushing Yards: Caden Harris - 266 (3 TDs) / Ferrari Busby - 47
Passing Yards: Jackson Clavel - 5-for-10, 86 yards, 1 TD

NOTABLES

• Caden Harris notched 125+ rushing yards for the seventh consecutive game en route to his 17th rushing touchdown of the season. He currently leads all competitors in the SCFA in rushing touchdowns and rushing yards per game (129.3).
• As a team, Hancock also leads the SCFA in nearly all rushing categories: rushing yards - 2,909 (1st); rushing attempts - 473 (1st); rushing yards per game - 290.9 (1st); rushing touchdowns - 37 (1st); yards per rush - 6.2 (2nd). 
• AHC's final tally of 562 yards (155 passing / 407 rushing) is a new season high for the program. The last time the Bulldogs recorded 550+ yards of offense in a single game was in 2019 when they defeated LA Valley, 70-3.

UP NEXT

The Bulldogs will now wait for the SCFA and 3C2A offices to announce the official pairings and host sites of upcoming bowl games. Ventura will advance to represent the National Northern League in the state playoff series after winning the head-to-head tiebreaker over AHC.