Gaucho comeback gives McElroy No. 100

Saddleback was able to even its record at 1-1 by using a strong second half in toppling College of the Canyons, 50-34, in Valencia on Saturday night. It was the 100th career win for head coach Mark McElroy, who entered his 14th season at 99-44.

In a game which lasted over 3-1/2 hours, the Gauchos were able to overcome a rough first half before getting the offense and special teams in sync in the second half to outscore Canyons 36-10. After trailing 24-16 at the intermission, the Gauchos' defense stopped Canyons on the Cougars' first drive of the second half before Tyler Firestone blocked the Cougars' punt and returned the ball himself 35 yards for a touchdown.

After surrendering a field goal, Saddleback took the lead for good on Anthony Cade's 3-yard touchdown plunge that capped a six play, 75-yard drive. Ryan Steska would add a 29-yard field goal and quarterback Tim Belman found Chris Simonton for a 41-yard scoring pass as Saddleback opened up a 40-27 lead early in the fourth quarter. Canyons would return the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown to close the gap to 40-34 but the Cougars would turn the ball over on downs on their next two possessions as the Saddleback defense started to tighten its belt.

After a slow start in the first half, Belman was able to finish the game with 30 completions in 52 attempts for 376 yards and three touchdowns. Exavier Edwards-Ford added eight receptions for 100 yards and also had four punt returns for 82 yards. Cade had 14 carries for 70 yards and added nine receptions for 62 yards.

Firestone ended up with two blocked punts in the contest while Colten Christensen made 11 tackles and had an interception for the defense.

Saddleback will host Riverside City College (2-0) on Saturday, September 15, with kickoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m.