COALINGA – Last week's bye for the West Hills College Coalinga football team definitely did the program good.
After coming out on top in a pair of close games, the Falcons had a much easier time in winning their third straight as they put on a dominant performance in a 62-3 victory over visiting College of the Siskiyous on Saturday at Memorial Stadium.
"From kickoff to the final whistle, we controlled all three aspects of the game," said WHCC head coach Justin Berna. "For the first time this season, we played a complete, error-free game. I'm really proud of the guys. It was a great team win. A lot of guys contributed to it."
West Hills racked up a season-high 610 yards of offense while collecting a school-record 407 yards on the ground as seven different Falcons scored rushing touchdowns.
"Our offensive line completely dominated," said Berna. "That record has just as much to do with our linemen as our running backs."
WHCC ran the ball 47 times, averaging an impressive 8.7 yards per carry. Jerry Tatum led the Falcons with 9 carries for 112 yards. His 2-yard touchdown run at the 2:31 mark in the opening quarter gave West Hills a 14-0 lead.
Tair Bolden ran in for a 5-yard touchdown and Gem Boyd snuck in from 3 yards out in the second quarter to send the Falcons into halftime with a commanding 27-0 advantage.
Jett Garcia (4 yards) and Avian Pesina (2 yards) capped long West Hills' drives in the third quarter with TD runs.
In the fourth, Garcia tossed a 33-yard touchdown pass to Porter Needs, Trey Cooks broke off a big 61-yard run for a TD, and Juan Martinez closed out the Falcons' scoring by running in for a 3-yard touchdown.
Siskiyous (0-5) finally broke up the shutout with no time left in the game, getting a 40-yard field goal as time expired.
For the Falcons, Pesina ran 13 times for 80 yards, Bolden had 9 carries for 76 yards, and Cooks rushed 4 times for 73 yards.
Boyd and Garcia combined for 203 passing yards. Boyd was 12 for 15 for 113 yards. His 15-yard TD pass to Daniel Nelson set the tone early in the first quarter. Garcia closed 5 of 8 for 90 yards and a TD.
Not to be outdone, the defense limited Siskiyous to 112 yards. The Falcons totaled 4 sacks and forced 3 turnovers. Jermaine Harris, Derrick Taylor, Terrell Eackles, and Dustin Garrett were all in on sacks.
West Hills improved to 3-1 overall with the win. The Falcons are back in action next Saturday (Oct. 7) when they host Monterey Peninsula College at 1 p.m. in their Golden Coast League opener.
"It was great to close the non-conference schedule at 3-1," said Berna. "But that doesn't matter now. The new season starts for us against a tough team that went to a bowl game last season."
