October 24, 2005

BULLDOGS RISE TO 5TH IN STATE REGIONAL POLL; BRACE FOR SHOWDOWN AT COLLEGE OF THE CANYONS

SANTA MARIA-- Following a 55-28 demolition of L.A. Valley, the AHC football team rose to fifth in the state southern regional poll and will play at top-ranked College of the Canyons on Saturday.

Without question the biggest community college game in the state this week, the contest can be heard live in Santa Maria on KUHL (AM 1440) and Lompoc on KTME (AM 1410). The broadcast begins with the Bulldog Pre-Game Show at 6:30 p.m. in advance of the 7 p.m. kickoff. Brad Memberto (play-by-play) and Irvin Kiger (color analyst) will be mike-side for all the action.

With its win over L.A. Valley, AHC improved to 6-1 overall and 4-0 in Western State Conference Northern Division Play. The Bulldogs are tied for first place in the division with Canyons (7-0, 4-0 WSC North), the defending state champion, which extended its state-leading win streak to 21 games with a 58-7 drubbing of L.A. Pierce.

The Bulldogs enter the game as the top scoring team in the state with a total of 355 points in seven games, an average of 50.7 per contest. Hancock's Drew Williams (So., Bayside Queens, NY) is the leading rusher in the Western State Conference with 968 yards on 124 carries, an average of 7.8 yards per carry and 138.3 per game. Williams is also the WSC's leading scorer with 15 touchdowns (all rushing) for a total of 90 points. In addition to scoring, Hancock ranks No. 1 in the WSC in total offense (500.0 yards per game) and rushing offense (372.0 yards per game).

Canyons has the WSC's best total team defense (an average of 277.0 yards per game allowed) and is also tops in the conference in rushing defense (92.6 yards per game). Under head coach Chuck Lyon, the Cougars blasted AHC last year, 51-0, en route to a perfect 14-0 record and the state championship. COC also holds a four-game win streak over the Bulldogs. Hancock's last win in the series was back in the 2000 season, when AHC posted a thrilling 24-21 win over the Cougars in the Western State Conference Bowl.