Vikings lose first home game on last-second play

The Inquirer: Student Voice of Diablo Valley College Website

Aaron Tolentino | Sports Reporter | DVC Inquirer | October 21, 2017

A touchdown with two seconds left took down the Vikings against Santa Rosa Junior College 24-20 on Friday for their first home defeat of the year.

When Santa Rosa ran the ball for a 1-yard touchdown, the entire Vikings' sideline went completely silent.

Shocked were the Vikings.

Santa Rosa came into the game winless, admist of all the tragedy caused by the Sonoma County fires.

A special moment of silence was given to Santa Rosa before the game acknowledging the Diablo Valley College community's thoughts were out to the many on the opposite sideline affected by the fires.

Santa Rosa was a team playing with immense emotion, along with desperation. They had games change venue, canceled and postponed due to the severity of the fires' effect in their area.

The Vikings were clearly the better team. They controlled most of the game, but the difference was the two big plays the defense allowed.

A 74-yard pass for a touchdown in the second quarter and a 75-yard pass to open up the third were ultimately the difference in the game. Santa Rosa didn't have much rhythm in their offense, but those two big plays made up for all of that.

The Santa Rosa defense was about to score on a pick six with just under four minutes left in the third to put them up 24-12, but a taunting penality from a Santa Rosa cornerback rescinded that defensive score.

It just seemed to be the Vikings' night because they seemed to catch the huge break they needed to win the game.

However, Santa Rosa deserved a lot of credit for fighting through that mental error and ultimately scoring on their final drive that started on their own 40 with 2:47 left in regulation.

There was something about a Santa Rosa team that has been through a lot on and off the field that caused them to want this game so badly and play with a sense of desperation.

The Vikings look to rebound next Saturday night when they travel to Contra Costa College in San Pablo for a 7 p.m. kickoff.

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