FOOTBALL BLASTS L.A. PIERCE FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT WIN

SANTA MARIA-- Coach Kris Dutra's steamroller of an Allan Hancock College football team set a school record for rushing yards and won its fourth-straight game, 55-17, over visiting L.A. Pierce on Saturday.

Hancock (4-1, 3-0 WSC) amassed a whopping 522 rushing yards on 60 carries by no less than 12 ball carriers. The old record of 477 was set against West Los Angeles in the 2001 season. Overall, AHC produced a season-high 589 yards of total offense and made 28 first downs.

Once again, the bulk of the credit went to the Bulldog offensive line, including center Clayton Rios (Fr., Righetti), guards Chase Rivera (So., Arroyo Grande) and Joe Parker (So., Bronx, NY), tackles Eric Murchison (So., Righetti) and Luke Conley (Fr., Righetti) and tight end Matt Sims (Fr., Lompoc). Also instrumental in gashing the Brahma defense time and again were fullbacks Andrew Hirsch (Fr., Arroyo Grande), Steve Dover (Fr., Morro Bay) and Brad Dykhouse (Fr., Templeton).

Shifty sophomore tailback Drew Williams (So., Queens, NY Bayside) was the key benefactor, scooting for a game-high 144 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. Shawn Stewart (Fr., Queens, NY Holy Cross) ran for 124 and three TDs on just nine attempts. Hirsch got in on the act with 78 yards and a TD in just six carries, while freshman Cory Stollmeyer added another 72 yards and two more TDs on nine attempts.

The unstoppable Bulldogs scored on all three of their first-quarter possessions while rolling to a 21-7 lead. Freshman quarterback John Dally (Righetti) led the team on an eight-play 62-yard march out of the gate, culminating with Stewart's first TD, a 28-yard bolt through the center of the Pierce defense. On the fifth play of Hancock's next possession, Hirsch hit a gaping hole between Rios and Parker, cut to the outside and sprinted for a sensational 55-yard score. The rout was on when Williams capped a short four-play 52-yard drive with his first TD, a seven-yarder off left tackle.

Pierce scored on the final play of the first period on a one-yard sneak by quarterback Thomas Herringshaw. The Bulldogs countered with another heavy dose of ground game, scoring in just five plays from 63 yards away, capped by Stollmeyer's nine-yard bolt up the middle. Herringshaw then hit Raymond Johnson with an 18-yard TD pass, pulling the Brahmas as close as they would get at 28-14.

Once again Hancock asserted itself on the ground, driving 56 yards in just three plays to take a 35-14 lead at the 9:12 mark of the second quarter on Williams' second TD, a burst off right tackle from three yards out. Pierce's Aaron Richards kicked a 34-yard field goal with 3:58 remaining in the half to give the Brahmas hope at the break, 35-17.

In the second half, the AHC defense displayed its muscle, knocking Herringshaw out of the game and holding the Brahmas scoreless. Big plays by Andre Lipscomb (Fr., Richmond, VA Hemitage), Elisee Pompilus (So., Bronx, NY Malden), Luke Deras (So., Righetti) and Jonathan Tuua (Fr., Long Beach Poly) shut the Pierce offense down. Touchdown runs of five and 26 yards by Stewart and a 13-yarder by Stollmeyer accounted for the remainder of the Bulldog scoring. Place-kicker Victor Velasco (So., Santa Maria) made good on seven conversion attempts in addition to pinning the Brahmas deep in their own territory on all nine of his kickoffs.

In a time consuming and sloppily played game, the two teams combined for 30 penalties and a total of 299 yards in assessments. The Bulldogs were flagged a season-high 15 times for 157 yards. Nonetheless, AHC has enjoyed an average of no less than 51.2 points per game during its current four-game win streak.

Hancock takes a week off with a scheduled bye Oct. 8, then returns to action in a 7 p.m. start at Santa Monica College on Oct. 15.