Santa Rosa rallies from 22-0 deficit to gain a tie

Santa Rosa defenders Ryan Ramos (85) and Marcello Petteway (25) combine to stop a Riverside Prep ball carrier.

Story by Elieen Esqueda, photos by Erika Felix, video by Caitlyn Hawn and Eileen Esqueda

Santa Rosa Academy's football team was losing 22-0 but rallied in a strong fourth quarter and wound up with a 28-28 tie with Riverside Prep Saturday night.

The Rangers didn't score until the final minute of the first half but then came alive in the second half. With less than seven minutes to go, Lance Burden caught a pass, dodged each tackle and ran for a 60-yard touchdown. The Rangers’ Connor Dougherty then scored the two-point conversion for SRA to tie the score, 28-28.

No one scored the rest of the fourth quarter and the game ended in a tie.

Quarterback Andrew Snyder passed for 183 yards and 2 touchdowns. Dougherty rushed for 163 yards and a touchdown.

In the first quarter, Silver Knights wide receiver Marques Kernan caught a touchdown pass, followed by a successful PAT from the team. The Silver Knights prevented the Rangers from scoring in the first quarter and kept the score 7-0.

In the second quarter, as the action intensified, Kernan caught a 10-yard touchdown pass, but the team missed their two-point conversion. There was a flag on the play, and the Silver Knights had a second chance to score the two-point conversion, but SRA’s Markel Chebat brought down player Mason Phillips from Riverside around the 6-yard line, so they failed their second attempt to score. By then, the Silver Knights held a lead of 13-0.

Still in the second quarter, Riverside’s Jalen Taylor scored a 5-yard rushing touchdown, but the two-point conversion was unsuccessful once again, so the score was then 19-0. Riverside's Jacob Zamora kicked a 23-yard field goal on the Silver Knights’ fourth down, resulting in their score of 22, with one minute left in the first half.

Before halftime, Snyder passed the ball to Kaden Long, who scored a 5-yard touchdown, followed by a PAT from Mateo Rodriguez. The score was then 22-7 by halftime.

By the third quarter, the Rangers’ determination to catch up grew greater. Snyder evaded each tackler with deception and almost completed a 60-yard touchdown pass, but there was a flag on the play. Snyder did not let this get to him, for he then completed a pass to Marcello Petteway, who scored a touchdown. The score was 22-14 at the end of the third quarter.

By the fourth quarter, a pass was completed to Rangers’ Dougherty, who scored a touchdown; however, the two-point conversion attempted was no good, leaving the score 22-20. Just as the Rangers were catching up, Riverside completed a pass to Kernan once again, who scored a touchdown, but the PAT was missed because the Rangers’ Burden successfully stopped it, resulting in a score of 28-20.

Then Burden's touchdown catch and the two-point conversion then tied the score.

Santa Rosa Academy's next game will be Sept. 22 against Carnegie Schools-Riverside at Jurupa Valley High School.

Below are video highlights of the game: