Jags hold off Warriors; Jackson sparks Mesa

By Ramon Scott
Updated: October 26, 2026

2026 COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Southwestern sets up Halloween showdown with Saddleback; Mesa scores final 28 points at Chaffey; blocked punts hurt Palomar

By RAMON SCOTT
EastCountySports.com

TORRENCE — Southwestern College needed one more explosive play to keep a determined El Camino comeback from becoming something worse.

Ahmad “AJ” Perry II delivered it.

Perry turned a short completion from Dominic Duran into a 75-yard touchdown, giving the Jaguars enough separation to finish a 31-24 road victory Saturday at Murdock Stadium.

The victory kept Southwestern alongside Saddleback in second place in the National Southern League, setting up their noon Halloween meeting in Chula Vista.

Elsewhere, San Diego Mesa scored 28 unanswered points to defeat Chaffey, 41-26, behind a spectacular return performance by former Helix High standout Isaiah Jackson.

Palomar fell to Saddleback, 42-26, despite 381 passing yards from Noah Schuback.

Southwestern and Saddleback enter their Oct. 31 showdown 7-1 overall and 4-1 in league, one game behind unbeaten Riverside. Mesa stands fourth at 6-2 and 3-2.

SOUTHWESTERN 31, EL CAMINO 24

Perry’s late burst protects Jaguars’ road victory

TORRANCE — Southwestern built a 21-point lead, watched El Camino close within four and then answered with two fourth-quarter scoring possessions to secure its seventh victory.

Steven Benson, a former Christian High kicker, converted a 21-yard field goal with 8:51 remaining, extending the Jaguars’ narrow advantage to 24-17.

Perry supplied the larger cushion.

With Southwestern facing third-and-long, Duran found Perry on a short pass. The receiver cut through the defense and raced 75 yards for a touchdown with 4:57 remaining, putting the Jaguars ahead 31-17.

El Camino answered with a late touchdown, but Southwestern finished with the victory, rebounding from its first loss of the season at Riverside.

Duran completed 12 of 17 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns, with one interception. Perry caught three passes for 104 yards, while Malachi Bean-Seay added four receptions for 48 yards and a touchdown.

The Jaguars rushed for 160 yards, receiving 67 yards and a touchdown from Elias Johnson, 56 yards on eight carries from Caleb Blocker, and 31 yards and a score from Jamar Johnson.

Southwestern established control early.

Elias Johnson’s 7-yard touchdown run opened the scoring with 8:28 remaining in the first quarter. Duran then connected with Bean-Seay for a 17-yard touchdown, extending the advantage to 14-0.

Jamar Johnson’s 1-yard touchdown run made it 21-0 with 5:37 left in the half.

The Warriors began their recovery before intermission when Colin Creason found Alec Saunders for a 25-yard touchdown.

Two Southwestern turnovers then helped El Camino make it a game.

A muffed punt gave the Warriors possession at the Jaguars’ 5, setting up Maika Eugenio’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Saunders early in the third quarter.

An interception by Patrick Hill Jr. supplied another short field at the Southwestern 20. The Jaguars prevented a touchdown, and El Camino settled for Maizcer Villalobos’ 24-yard field goal, cutting the deficit to 21-17 with 8:58 remaining in the third.

Southwestern kept that four-point advantage into the fourth quarter before Benson and Perry delivered the response.

Eugenio’s 4-yard touchdown pass to Marcus Moore brought El Camino within seven with 2:23 left, completing the scoring.

The Warriors outgained Southwestern 376-353, but the Jaguars held El Camino to 84 rushing yards on 31 attempts.

Former Christian High linebacker Brady Eads led Southwestern with seven tackles, including a half-tackle for loss and a pass breakup.

Niko Ta’a and Omero Inda each had six tackles. Valentino Wedderburn intercepted a pass and broke up two others, while David Peevy recorded a sack and three quarterback hurries.

Saunders finished with eight catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns for El Camino, which fell to 3-5 overall and 1-4 in league.

According to El Camino’s series history, the victory was Southwestern’s first over the Warriors since the programs’ initial meeting in 1983.

LOOKING AHEAD: Southwestern hosts Saddleback at noon Saturday, Oct. 31, with the teams tied for second place. The Bobcats arrive having won four consecutive games.

SAN DIEGO MESA 41, CHAFFEY 26

Jackson’s returns ignite 28-point finishing surge

RANCHO CUCAMONGA — Isaiah Jackson repeatedly gave Mesa opportunities to change the game. Eventually, the Olympians turned those opportunities into a runaway finish.

The Helix High product returned a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown and a third-quarter punt 52 yards to the Chaffey 2, helping Mesa overcome a 26-13 deficit.

The Olympians scored the game’s final 28 points, bouncing back from their overtime loss to Saddleback.

Jackson finished with 144 yards on three kickoff returns and 119 yards on three punt returns—263 return yards. Including his five rushing yards, he accumulated 268 all-purpose yards.

His biggest punt return started the decisive stretch.

After Jack Metzler’s sack helped force a Chaffey punt, Jackson carried the return to the Panthers’ 2. Devin Cerda scored on the next play, cutting Mesa’s deficit to 26-20 with 4:54 remaining in the third quarter.

Another special-teams opportunity followed.

Chaffey lost the ball on a disrupted fourth-down play, and Joshua Newbern recovered at the Panthers’ 27.

Mesa converted that possession when Diesel Taylor found Braxton Sherley for a 21-yard touchdown on fourth-and-4. Former Granite Hills High kicker Robert Petrich added the extra point, putting the Olympians ahead 27-26 with 1:17 left in the third.

They never surrendered the lead.

Taylor’s 19-yard touchdown pass to former Mount Miguel High receiver Ezelle Buchanan extended the advantage to 34-26 with 11:31 remaining.

Following another defensive stop, Mesa drove 66 yards in 10 plays, finishing with Cerda’s second 2-yard touchdown run for a 41-26 lead with 5:09 left.

Taylor completed 26 of 46 passes for 248 yards and three touchdowns without an interception.

Sherley caught four passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns, including a 30-yard score on Mesa’s opening possession.

Grady Woodward led the Olympians with seven catches for 68 yards, while Jayden Chanel added seven receptions for 66 yards.

Samuel Marquez rushed for 70 yards on eight carries, and former Monte Vista High standout Alexander Villanueva added 45 yards on 14 attempts.

The afternoon had been considerably less comfortable before Mesa’s finishing surge.

Chaffey tied the game at 6-6 on Darion Flucker’s 19-yard fumble return late in the first quarter, then moved ahead on Frankie Villabazo’s 76-yard touchdown pass to Aureliano Bedoy.

Jackson immediately answered with his 91-yard kickoff return, giving Mesa a 13-12 lead.

The Panthers regained control after recovering a Villanueva fumble. Travante James-Reek scored on a 32-yard run, putting Chaffey ahead 18-13 at halftime.

Villabazo’s 8-yard touchdown pass to Nathan Enriquez and the quarterback’s two-point conversion extended the lead to 26-13 early in the third quarter.

Chaffey did not score again.

Metzler finished with five tackles and two sacks, while Isaac Rimada added a sack. Former Helix High defensive back Carter Ross intercepted a fourth-down pass near Mesa’s goal line before halftime.

Mesa held Chaffey to 44 net rushing yards, although Villabazo passed for 349 yards.

Both teams repeatedly hurt themselves with penalties. Mesa was flagged 14 times for 212 yards, while Chaffey accumulated 16 penalties for 165 yards.

The Olympians nevertheless finished the scoring opportunities that mattered most, separating themselves from a Panthers team that entered with the same overall and league records.

Chaffey fell to 5-3 and 2-3.

SADDLEBACK 42, PALOMAR 26

Blocked punts outweigh Schuback’s 381-yard afternoon

MISSION VIEJO — Palomar moved the ball through the air and avoided offensive turnovers, but two blocked punts returned or recovered for touchdowns created a deficit the Comets could not erase.

Noah Schuback passed for 381 yards, and Princeton Anderson produced 98 receiving yards, including a 65-yard touchdown, in Saturday’s loss at Saddleback.

Palomar fell to 3-5 overall and 1-4 in league.

The Bobcats never trailed.

Timmy Herr’s 44-yard touchdown pass to Francisco Martinez opened the scoring. Jake Minter then blocked a Palomar punt, recovered the ball and returned it 25 yards for a touchdown, giving Saddleback a 14-0 lead.

The Comets pulled within 14-10 in the second quarter when Schuback connected with Anderson, who broke a tackle and raced to the end zone.

Another blocked punt restored Saddleback’s cushion.

Vai Manutai broke through to block the kick, and Ethan Naudin recovered in the end zone for a touchdown, giving the Bobcats a 21-10 halftime advantage.

Saddleback widened the lead early in the third quarter when Herr found Mason Fromm for a 37-yard touchdown.

A subsequent Palomar special-teams miscue gave the Bobcats possession at the Comets’ 17. Keoni Ihu-Rodrigues finished the short drive with a 6-yard touchdown run, extending the margin to 35-13.

Palomar closed within 35-20 in the fourth quarter, but Saddleback answered with a nine-play drive that consumed 5:03. Kalelepono Wong’s 10-yard touchdown run made it 42-20 with just over two minutes remaining.

The Comets added a final touchdown to complete the scoring.

Palomar finished with 404 yards of offense, compared with Saddleback’s 344, but managed only 23 net rushing yards.

Herr completed 17 of 19 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns, while Martinez caught three passes for 72 yards.

The Bobcats improved to 7-1 overall and 4-1 in league, setting up their Halloween visit to Southwestern.