2019 Ventura College Football Team News
Aside from not celebrating a season-opening win this weekend due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the Ventura College football program had a pretty good weekend, celebrating the arrival of a pair of alumni into the National Football League. Pirate alumni Jake Luton '16 and Jessie Lemonier '17, are set to earn their paychecks playing football as the 2020 NFL season opens this week. Luton has been named the back-up quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars while Lemonier is officially on the practice squad for the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Ventura College Athletic Department is pleased to report that they list 83 student athletes from 2019-20 who are slated to transfer to four-year institutions in the fall, as of August 31. Of those transfers, 60 plan on continuing their athletic careers at their new school, most of them with an athletic scholarship. The transferring student athletes will attend 58 different schools in 26 states around the country.
Ventura College football coach Steve Mooshagian has announced 24 transfers from the 2019 Northern Conference champion Pirates, five of whom were mid-year transfers. Among the transfers and signees, 12 are moving on to NCAA Division I, eight to NCAA Division II, one to NAIA and three to the NCAA Division III level. Many of these transfers were part of VC's 2018 Southern California Football Association championship team, and they helped lead a relatively young Pirate team in 2019 to a share of the Northern Conference title.
Dennis Downey, a 1973 Ventura College alumnus and a member of the VC Athletics Hall of Fame, passed away peacefully in his sleep on April 20, 2020. A graduate of Ventura High School, he was a standout for the Pirates in football and baseball before transferring to Oregon State.
Three Ventura College football alumni continued their dreams of playing in the National Football League on the final day of the NFL Draft Saturday. Jake Luton, the 2016 SCFA Northern Conference Offensive Player of the Year for VC, was drafted in the sixth round, the 189th pick overall, by the Jacksonville Jaguars. Meanwhile 2017 Northern Conference Defensive Player of the Year Jessie Lemonier signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Los Angeles Chargers. Case Cookus, a grey-shirt member of the VC's 2014 team was signed by the New York Giants.
Coming off the program's first trip to the CCCAA State Championship Game in 2018, the Ventura College Pirate football team looked to keep the momentum rolling in 2019. VC started out the year winning six of their first seven games before a tough loss against College of the Canyons derailed the plans. The Pirates responded with two more wins, however, to claim a share of the Northern Conference title, the team's sixth in the past eight years.
VC football sophomores Brandon Ocheltree and Steve Sanchez have been named Academic All-State by the California Community College Football Coaches Association as announced last month. Ocheltree posted a team-high grade point average of 3.62 while Sanchez earned a 3.52 GPA. The pair were among 41 players from throughout he state honored with the highest academic distinction. Ventura was one of 11 programs with multiple players honored.
The tradition of academic achievement by the Ventura College football team continues with 16 Pirates being named to the 2019 Southern California Football Association Scholar-Athlete Team. The Pirates honored were led by punter Steve Sanchez and wide receiver Dustin Sanchez, both of whom were named to the Dean's list in the fall with grade point averages of 3.52 and 3.50, respectively. VC (16) was second to Saddleback (17) in the total number of honorees.
Ventura College football coach Steve Mooshagian has announced seven transfers from the 2019 Northern Conference champion Pirates, five of whom were mid-year transfers. Among the transfers and signees, two are moving on to NCAA Division I, three to NCAA Division II, one to NAIA and one to theNCAA Division III level. With the addition of these transfers, coach Mooshagian has now helped 241 student athletes move on to the four-year level in his ten years leading the Pirates.
A pair of record-breaking performances from the 2019 season earned wide receiver Terrell Vaughn and kicker Alberto Arroyo All-American honors, as voted upon by the California Community College Football Coaches Association last month. They were joined by three other Pirates on the CCCFCA Region III All-State list. The Pirates, meanwhile, were voted 10th in the final state poll released by the JC Athletic Bureau and the CCCFCA.
Five members of the Northern Conference co-champion Pirate football team have earned unanimous selection onto the all-conference team, leading a host of Pirates honored with post-season awards. Right tackle Will Bonkavich leads the list of unanimous honorees, along with wide receiver Terrell Vaughn, kicker Alberto Arroyo, all-purpose back Chris Reaves and utility player Juan Gaytan. A total of eight Pirtes were named first team All-Northern Conference while six were named second team.
The Pirate football team fell into a 21-6 hole early in the second quarter of Saturday's Joe Kapp Real Estate Beach Bowl, and, despite a valiant attempt, could not climb out of it, falling to Cerritos 46-39 at the VC Sportsplex. VC (8-3) held an early 3-0 lead, but the Falcons scored 21 of the next 24 points to secure the advantage in the season finale. Alaka'I Yuen was 17-20 in the air for 310 yards and two scores while tight end Daniel Moraga caught eight passes for 119 yards and a score to earn team MVP honors for the game.
Despite finishing fourth in the Southern California Football Association RPI rankings, the Ventura College football team will not be heading back to the playoffs to defend their SCFA title from a year ago. But fresh off their win at Long Beach on Saturday to clinch a share of the program's sixth conference title in eight seasons. the Pirates (8-2) will host the Joe Kapp Real Estate Beach Bowl on Saturday Nov. 23 at the VC Sportsplex against No. 8 Cerritos College (6-4).
Running back Jayden Vargas had another solid outing, and the bend-but-don't-break Pirate defense came up with big plays when they needed it the most as the Ventura College football team held on for a 30-26 victory Saturday night at Long Beach City College. With the victory, VC (8-2, 4-1) captured a share of the Northern Conference championship with LBCC and Canyons, the program's sixth conference title in the last eight seasons. Kicker Alberto Arroyo had three field goals and Travis Calloway had 13 tackles to lead Ventura to the triumph on the last day of the regular season.
The Pirate football team raced out to a 24-7 first half lead over visiting East Los Angels College Saturday night, then made it hold up in their 45-42 victory over the Huskies. Jayden Vargas rushed for 146 yards and two touchdowns, and Chuck Wick had two more rushing scores while Terrell Vaughn had 10 pass receptions for 110 yards and two trips to the end zone. Ventura's win, combined with Long Beach's defeat of Canyons, brings the Pirates (7-2, 3-1) back into the Northern Conference title hunt with one game left visiting LBCC next week.
On the opening drive of the third quarter, VC quarterback Dino Maldonado hit Mark Ferrell for a 25 yard touchdown giving the Pirates a 35-21 lead. Unfortunately it was all Canyons from that point as CoC scored 27 of the final 30 points of the game in defeating Ventura 48-38 in a pivotal Northern Conference battle. Maldonado was 21-33 for 257 yards and two scores and running back Jayden Vargas had 19 carries for 129 yards and a touchdown to lead VC (6-2, 2-1) in the contest.
