MOORPARK — Bishop Diego survived a wild finish on Friday, kicking a go-ahead field goal in the final two minutes and then recovering a fumble in its own end zone with 21 seconds left to preserve a 17-14 victory at Moorpark on Friday.
Adam Luckhurst’s 44-yard field goal broke a 14-14 deadlock with 1:54 remaining, helping the Cardinals (4-5, 1-2 Camino League) snap a four-game losing streak.
Moorpark (3-6, 1-3) nearly pulled out a miracle victory, however. Quarterback Blake Sturgill completed two fourth-down passes while driving his team from its own 20 to the Bishop 25.
His next pass was caught at the 2-yard line, but the ball was knocked loose and recovered in the end zone by the Cardinals with 21 seconds left.
Sturgill, a third-year starter, completed 20-of-28 passes for 195 yards and also scored on a game-tying, quarterback sneak with 4:21 to go.
Bishop sophomore Michael Luckhurst connected with fellow sophomore Sam Mikeale for a pair of touchdown throws and finished with 102 yards passing.
The first TD toss was a 31-yarder with 6:25 left in the second quarter while the second covered 57 yards to put the Cardinals ahead 14-7 with 8:08 remaining in the third period.
Adrian Soracco led Bishop’s running game, gaining a season-high 174 yards on 28 carries.
The Cardinals gained 327 yards total offense but victimized themselves with four turnovers and 13 penalties for 104 yards.
Bishop will complete its regular season next Friday with a homecoming game against Thousand Oaks.
ST. JOSEPH 21, ARROYO GRANDE 14
Arroyo Grande took a 14-13 lead with just 8:48 left in the contest before St. Joseph quarterback Hunter Barnhart engineered a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter.
St. Joseph has now won four straight games after a 2-3 start.
Junior running back Brett Burress capped off the final drive with a four-yard rushing touchdown. Barnhart scored on the two-point conversion to give St. Joseph a seven-point lead.
On the ensuing possession, the Knights defense stepped up, forcing a turnover on downs with just 12 seconds left.
St. Joseph junior kicker Brock Marcois was 2-2 on the night in field goal attempts, both from 27 yards out. Barnhart also had one passing touchdown on Friday, a 30-yard strike in the first quarter.
The Knights will host Righetti next week for a chance to claim their second-straight outright Mountain League championship.
RIGHETTI 28, PASO ROBLES 14
Righetti was tied 7-7 at the half but exploded for 21 second-half points to win by two touchdowns.
Quarterback Logan Mortensen threw one touchdown and added another on the ground while running back Kidasi Nepa had two rushing touchdowns.
Mortensen got the scoring going when he found Chase Reynoso for a 34-yard score. Then, with less than six minutes to go in the third, Nepa scored his first touchdown to give Righetti the lead back at 14-7.
Mortensen would then score from two yards out on the ground while Nepa scored from 18 to give the Warriors a commanding 28-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
Paso Robles scored on a 55-yard touchdown pass in the final frame but could not add another score from there.
SANTA MARIA 41, MORRO BAY 13
The Saints snapped their three-game losing streak on Friday when, after falling down 7-0, they scored 41 unanswered points to eventually win by four touchdowns.
Senior quarterback Dominick Martinez had a great performance in the win, scoring the Santa Maria’s first three touchdowns. He scored from 50, 30 and 10 yards, all on the ground.
Defensively, defensive linemen Joel Evangelista and Abel Santana were great in stopping the running game while defensive back Jovanny Garcia tallied an interception in the third quarter.
The Saints (4-5, 1-2), who clinched a playoff spot with a win, will travel to face rival Pioneer Valley next Friday.
CATE 34, FAITH BAPTIST 22
The Rams played the spoiler for the Contender’s homecoming game, as Cate improved to 2-0 in the Mt. Pinos League following Friday’s win. Game details were not available as of press time.
CARPINTERIA, VIEWPOINT
The game between Carpinteria and Viewpoint, which was supposed to take place at Calabasas High at 7 p.m., was canceled due to poor air quality around the area due to fires. There are no plans to make up this game.
