SAN MATEO – The College of San Mateo defense may have bended, but in the biggest moment of the game on Saturday, the Bulldogs didn't break.
After allowing 20 fourth-quarter points and a last-minute 84-yard touchdown drive that got visiting American River College within a point, the CSM defense stopped Beavers running back Joshua Moore short of the goal line on a two-point conversion try to secure a narrow 24-23 San Mateo victory at College Heights Stadium.
The Bulldogs' defense had been in control all afternoon, shutting out American River during the first half while allowing just a field goal in the third quarter.
CSM built a 17-3 lead heading into the final period after getting a 1-yard touchdown run from Nate Sanchez on its opening drive, a 39-yard field goal from Caleb Ojeda in the second, and a 15-yard TD pass from Anthony Grigbsy to Fidel Pitts in the third quarter.
ARC (3-1 overall) responded with a 10-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard TD plunge from Moore to cut the Bulldogs' lead to 17-10 at the 11:52 mark in the fourth.
San Mateo responded with a long 13-play, 64-yard scoring drive that chewed up over 8 minutes from the clock. Grigbsy hit Anthony Freeman for a 16-yard touchdown and CSM extended its advantage to 24-10 with 3:18 left.
The Beavers came right back to score quickly on their ensuing kickoff and forced CSM to punt to get the ball back with 1:18 remaining in the contest. ARC quarterback Kenneth Lueth completed five straight passes to take the Beavers from their own 18-yard line to the San Mateo 4-yard line.
With 20 seconds left to play, Lueth connected with Robert Freeman for a touchdown to make the score 24-23. Instead of going for the tie and force overtime, American River chose to go for two points. The Bulldogs appeared to have denied ARC's two-point pass attempt, but CSM was flagged for pass interference, putting the ball even closer at the 2-yard line. American River went with the run on its next play and Moore was hit immediately by the Bulldogs' defense, stopping him near the 1-yard line to wrap up the win.
Nico Caruso was one of four Bulldogs to come up with 6 tackles. He also added a pair of sacks to lead the defense. Terence Loville (1 pass break up), Fidel Pitts (1 PBU), and Arona Mata'u also had 6 tackles for the Bulldogs.
On offense, Grigbsy threw for 252 yards on 19 of 32 passing with a pair of touchdowns. Jeremiah Patterson was his top target, as he hauled in 7 receptions for 94 yards.
Anthony Freeman ran twice for a team-high 48 yards on the ground while Nate Sanchez rushed 17 times for 42 yards and a TD.
Defending state champion CSM remain undefeated at 4-0 and will be tested next Saturday (Sep. 30) with a 1 p.m. road game at Butte College.
