Freshman Pesante runs over Citrus Owls in lopsided victory

   Freshman running back Eric Pesante introduced himself to Citrus College as he flipped over the defensive line and into the end zone scoring his second touchdown in the Dons 38-7 win over the Fighting Owls Sept. 5.
   "Nothing but fun," Pesante said. "It was just pure fun jumping over the line."
   Pesante, who attended Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Corona, scored the first touchdown of the year on an eight-yard run. Seven minutes later, quarterback Jordan Thomas completed an 11-yard touchdown pass to freshman receiver Parker Roberts to make the game 14-0.
   After a muffed punt by Citrus College, the Dons drove the ball to the one yard line where Pesante dove in for his second touchdown and a 21-0 Santa Ana College lead.
   Roberts scored his second touchdown on a 31-yard pass from Jordan making the score 28-0 in the first half. A key play to the first half was a fourth-and-6 yard pass to linebacker Blake Pool for a first down.
   "The linebackers weren’t guarding me and they threw the ball my way," Poole said.
   Head Coach Geoff Jones showed his faith in place-kicker Chase Lansford when he sent him out for a 60 yard field goal attempt that came up short.
   "He is the best kicker we have had since David Buehler was here," Jones said.
   Santa Ana College’s offensive assault continued when Thomas threw his third touchdown pass to receiver Anthony Martin to give Santa Ana a dominating 35-7 lead in the third quarter.
   The defense continued to shut down Citrus when defensive back Ryan Handford intercepted a pass and returned it for 15 yards.
   Sophomore defensive back Michael Neal sealed the victory when he made an interception in the fourth quarter.
  Running back Rap Dantic led the Dons in rushing with 40 yards on 11 carries. The team ended the game combining for 179 rushing yards. Nine of those rushers were running backs who collected a total of 170 yards.
   Thomas ended with 225 passing yards, three touchdown passes and no interceptions.
   "We put the ball in Jordan’s hands and let him go for it," Jones said.
   Roberts quickly became Jordan’s favorite target catching two touchdowns, five catches and 64 yards receiving. Pool was the second leading receiver with 57 yards to go with five tackles.
   "Games like this you get to have guys get in and get involved," Jones said.
   The Dons face Los Angeles Harbor College in an away game on Saturday at 6 p.m.