No. 2 Hancock Football Hosts No. 5 LA Valley Saturday in First Place Showdown

The Hancock football team hosts defending American Pacific champion L.A. Valley this Saturday, October 21, at 2 p.m. The Bulldogs and Monarchs start the week with identical records of 4-2 overall and 1-0 in conference play. The Bulldogs climbed three spots to No. 2 in this week's Southern California - American Division Regional poll. The Monarchs are ranked No. 5 this week.

Hancock is coming off a dominant 31-3 win at Santa Barbara City College. The Bulldogs forced three turnovers and limited the potent SBCC offense to just 204 yards and no touchdowns. The offense racked up 370 total yards, including 296 on the ground. After rushing for less than 50 yards total in the first five games of the season, freshman Isaac Bausley (Nipomo HS) broke out for a career-high 124 yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns. Damon Whitmill, Jr. (N. Kansas City HS) added 84 yards on 19 carries. Quarterback Jimmy Kelleher (Mac Arthur HS) completed eight of his 16 passes for 74 yards and two touchdowns. Dominic Chance (Atascadero HS) caught a 28-yard touchdown, while Michael Ferraro (Wantagh HS) hauled in a nine-yard touchdown pass from Kelleher. Defensively, Stephen Sings (Vance HS) led the way with 12 tackles. Osa Omokaro (Hillside HS) made 10 stops, forced a fumble and made 3.5 tackles for loss. JD Smith (Sheffield HS) and Lenny Roundtree, Jr. (Miami Northwestern HS) also intercepted passes.

Hancock ranks eighth in the state with 217.5 rushing yards per game. Defensively, Hancock ranks second in the state with 27 sacks, sixth in the state in rushing defense at 69.7 yards allowed per game, and seventh in California with 14 interceptions.

Kelleher ranks second among conference quarterbacks with 158 passing yards per game. He has five touchdown passes and seven interceptions. Ryheem Skinner (Clinton HS) is the team's leading rusher with 303 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Whitmill has 282 yards and two scores, while Bausley leads the team with three rushing touchdowns to go with 170 rushing yards. Nick Kimball (Nipomo HS) leads the team with 25 receptions for 317 yards and one touchdown. Ferraro has 19 catches for 242 yards. Basiru Jobe (Upper Room Christian HS) leads the defense with 54 tackles, 6.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles. Omokaro has 11 tackles for loss, including 5.5 sacks and two forced fumbles. Domanic Chapa (Grandview HS) has three interceptions to lead the squad. Eight Bulldogs have picked off a total of 12 passes this season.

L.A. Valley is 4-2 overall and 1-0 in league. Last week, the Monarchs edged L.A. Pierce 7-6. A failed two-point conversion attempt helped to preserve the victory. Arkemus Baskerv led the Monarchs with 95 rushing yards on 13 carries, including a 54-yard gain. Jeremiah Lorick had six catches for 73 yards last week. The defense forced three turnovers and recorded 10 tackles for loss.

L.A. Valley averages 22 points and 287 yards per game – 180 through the air and 107 on the ground. The Monarchs use three quarterbacks: Kalawaia Judd, Julious Sabasti and Clarence Willia. The trio has combined for 1,080 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions. The ground game centers around Baskerv who averages 56 rushing yards per game and has scored four touchdowns. Lorick is the team's leading receiver with 21 catches for 292 yards and one touchdown, while Fazion Knight has 12 catches for 128 yards and three touchdowns. Defensively, Tayler Manuel leads the Monarchs with two sacks, 7.5 tackles for loss, four forced fumbles and two interceptions. Craig Jones has three interceptions, while Tyree Thompson leads the team with 32 tackles and 8.5 tackles for loss.

Last year, Hancock fell 54-27 to the Monarchs who finished the season 11-0.