Pirates rally, but falter

SANTA ANA — Just like those afflicted by plummeting financial portfolios in recent weeks, Orange Coast College saw a formidable football nest egg unexpectedly crushed Saturday night at the Santa Ana Bowl.

The Pirates rallied from a 14-10 halftime deficit to build a 27-14 lead with 4:16 left in their Southern California Football Assn. American Division game against host Santa Ana.

But the Dons produced a rally of their own to claim a 28-27 triumph.

Santa Ana used eight plays to march 68 yards to cut the deficit to 27-21 with 2:24 left, then recovered the ensuing onside kickoff to set up the game-winning score.

The Dons (4-2, 1-1 in the division), ranked No. 16 in Southern California, regained the lead with a four-play, 60-yard assault that left the Pirates (4-2, 0-2), ranked No. 6 in SoCal and No. 13 in the state, 1:26 on the clock to salvage victory from depressing defeat.

And OCC appeared ready and able to do just that, after lineman Kevin Patrick returned a pooch kickoff 12 yards to the OCC 48 after the visitors surrendered the lead.

A nine-yard completion, a personal foul penalty for hitting a receiver out of bounds after an incompletion, a five-yard run and a six-yard pass from quarterback Taylor Hughes to Ricky Carroll, moved the Pirates to the Sana Ana 17-yard line with 37 seconds left.

With OCC kicker Ryan Casano having shown range beyond 50 yards in practice and having booted an American Division-leading eight field goals already this year, the Pirates appeared set to not only regain the lead, but work enough time off the clock as not to allow the Dons any subsequent response.

The next snap, however, put a scare into the visitors as freshman tailback Ray Holley fumbled while carrying over the left side. The ball squirted precariously back into the OCC backfield, bounding temptingly before a hard-charging defense. But Holley somehow managed to scramble backward, reach out and pull the ball back into his chest at the Dons’ 25 with 23 seconds left.

Hughes threw into the end zone on the next snap and had Cameron Hall open. But the throw sailed beyond a leaping attempt by the 6-foot-3 receiver, leaving 19 ticks on the clock.

Holley’s third-down run seemed merely to center the ball between the hash marks for Casano, who came on to try what would have been a 44-yard game-winning field goal.

But the kick was blocked by what appeared to be several Dons who had quickly penetrated the OCC blocking wall. The ball bounced backward and Santa Ana gained possession, needing only to take a knee from victory formation on the final snap.

The failure to finish on a scoring opportunity was not unique in the second half for the Pirates, who scored on their first two possessions after intermission to take a 20-14 lead.

After sophomore Benjamin Soza, who moved from safety to cornerback for the first time all season to fill what had been a defensive weakness for the team that came in leading the division in fewest points allowed per game (16.2), intercepted at his own 16, OCC continued its offensive resurgence.

With a series of Hughes passes and Holley runs, OCC moved to the Santa Ana 12 and Holley bolted around the left side for what appeared to be a touchdown. But a holding call negated the score and the Pirates eventually had to settle for a 36-yard field-goal try.

But Casano, who had a would-be 35-yard field-goal try sabotaged by a high snap just inside four minutes left in the opening half, pulled this attempt wide left.

Still, after a three-and-out, OCC needed just seven plays to march 51 yards for its final TD, as Holley swept left for a 20-yard scoring run with 4:16 left.

Casano’s conversion kick made it a 13-point cushion.

But a personal foul on a late hit, one of several called on both teams in a game that produced 27 penalties for 285 yards (18 infractions for 179 yards against the Dons), helped expedite Santa Ana’s subsequent scoring drive and set up the obvious onside kick.

Using a tight formation, the Dons punched a bounding ball directly between the hash marks.

A trio of OCC players on the front wall charged forward, hoping to collect the ball before being drilled by onrushing Dons. But the ball caromed off an OCC player into the hands of Santa Ana’s Phillip Van Holland.

Hughes finished with 243 passing yards to account for most of the Pirates’ 350 yards of offense.

But Santa Ana had 406 offensive yards and recovered three OCC fumbles to help counteract its generosity in the penalty department.

FIRST QUARTER

SA – Martinez recovered fumble in end zone (Canney kick), 8:25.

OCC – Vidal 17 pass from Hughes (Casano kick), 5:04.

SECOND QUARTER

SA – Coulter 4 run (Canney kick), 12:44.

OCC – Casano 39 FG, 10:12.

THIRD QUARTER

OCC – Hall 60 pass from Hughes (Casano kick), 6:39.

OCC – Casano 29 FG, :13.

FOURTH QUARTER

OCC – Holley 20 run (Casano kick), 4:16.

SA – Matthews 3 pass from Coulter (Canney kick), 2:24.

SA – Kelly 16 run (Canney kick), 1:26.

INDIVIDUAL RUSHING

OCC – Holley, 20-65, 1 TD; Hughes, 7-23; Dean DeLeone, 1-23; Ah-Hi, 8-14.

SA – Bryson, 15-88, 1 TD; Williams, 4-43; Clemmons, 2-17; Privitelli, 3-17.

INDIVIDUAL PASSING

OCC – Hughes, 17-28-1, 243, 2 TDs.

SA – Coulter, 20-37-1, 231, 1 TD; Brown, 1-0-1.

INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING

OCC – Hall, 4-104, 1 TD; Carroll, 4-50; Lefrandt, 2-25; Holley, 2-5.

SA – Besch, 4-50; Van Holland, 3-39; Lewis, 3-32; Matthews, 3-22, 1 TD.

BARRY FAULKNER may be reached at (714) 966-4615 or at barry.faulkner@latimes.com.