[0] MATADORS LOSE THEIR WAY; CSUN STUMBLES AT SACRAMENTO : SACRAMENTO STATE 35, CSUN 21.Byline: Brian Dohn Daily News Staff Writer It's a good thing Cal State Northridge bussed home, because the Matadors never would have made it through the airport metal detectors. Not with all the lead in their feet from shooting themselves so much. CSUN CSUN California State University Northridge fumbled six times, had five turnovers and were victimized by a fake field goal as Sacramento State pulled the upset of the season and beat the 16th-ranked Matadors 35-21 Saturday at Hornet hornet: see wasp. Field. It was Sacramento State's second win in 20 league games since joining the Big Sky Conference. The Hornets (3-4, 1-3 Big Sky) were also on a four-game losing streak. ``We overlooked them,'' CSUN freshman linebacker Lewis Blanton said. ``I feel bad because we know we should have won. They knew we should have won. They kept saying, `You guys are hurting yourselves.' '' The Hornets meant it on the field, but the pain of this defeat will carry further. The loss cost the Matadors (4-2, 3-1 Big Sky) their four-game winning streak Noun 1. winning streak - a streak of wins streak, run - an unbroken series of events; "had a streak of bad luck"; "Nicklaus had a run of birdies" and also a wonderful chance to distance themselves from the rest of the Big Sky. Instead, it sets up a first-place showdown with Montana State (4-2, 2-1) next week in Northridge. ``It was all of us. That's why we lost,'' said CSUN running back Melvin Blue, who ran for a season-high 117 yards and two touchdowns but fumbled once. ``Players, coaches, all of us. Offense, defense, coaches. It was a total team effort.'' While much of the horror can be pinned on the four lost fumbles, Sacramento State mighty mite Charles Roberts Charles Roberts could refer to:
The 5-foot-6 sophomore running back, who entered the night second in Division I-AA with 183 yards per game, dashed for 231 yards on 41 carries. He also scored three touchdowns, including the clinching one from 4 yards to give the Hornets a 35-21 lead with 9:58 to play. ``Defenses can contain me for the first 20 or 25 carries, but once I get up to 30 or 35 the defense gets tired,'' said Roberts, who increased his season total to 1,327 yards. ``That usually happens with big backs, but maybe it's because I move so much.'' The coup de grace coup de grâce n. pl. coups de grâce 1. A deathblow delivered to end the misery of a mortally wounded victim. 2. A finishing stroke or decisive event. of the Matadors' offensive woes came after a frantic second-half rally in which CSUN pulled within 28-21 after trailing by 21 points early in the third quarter. On a fourth-and-2, defensive back Chazz Moore batted down a ball at the line of scrimmage line of scrimmage n. pl. lines of scrimmage Football Either of two imaginary lines extending across the field parallel to the goal line at the ends of the ball as it rests prior to being snapped and at which each team lines up for to give the Matadors possession on their own 37. CSUN embarked on a drive to Sacramento State's 22-yard line late in the third quarter, which is also when center Beau Cherry left with a sprained ankle A sprained ankle, also known as a ankle sprain, ankle injury or ankle ligament injury, is a common medical condition where one or more of the ligaments of the ankle is torn or partially torn. . Two plays later, CSUN quarterback Marcus Brady Marcus Brady (Born September 24, 1979) is a quarterback for the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL. College career He attended Cal State Northridge as a business major, where he started 43 straight games. (20 of 29, 256 yards, three fumbles) and third-string center Thomas Gomez Thomas Gomez (July 10, 1905 – June 18, 1971) was an Academy Award-nominated American actor. Born Sabino Tomas Gomez in New York, New York, Gomez began his acting career in theater during the 1920s and was a student of the actor Walter Hampden. botched botch tr.v. botched, botch·ing, botch·es 1. To ruin through clumsiness. 2. To make or perform clumsily; bungle. 3. To repair or mend clumsily. n. 1. a snap and the Hornets recovered. CSUN never did. ``There was a sliver sliver in wool processing a continuous band of carded and combed wool which has not yet been twisted into yarn. of doubt in the game of, `Here comes Northridge,' but we didn't do it,'' CSUN coach Ron Ponciano said. ``They outcoached us in all three phases of the game and outplayed us in all three phases of the game. It's a big-time lesson for us. You cannot underestimate anyone's ability.'' To crystallize crys·tal·lize also crys·tal·ize v. crys·tal·lized also crys·tal·ized, crys·tal·liz·ing also crys·tal·iz·ing, crys·tal·liz·es also crys·tal·iz·es v.tr. 1. the Matadors' performance, look no further than the first five minutes of the second half. Needing a big final 30 minutes to offset a lackluster and uninspired opening half, CSUN floundered. On the first play from scrimmage A play from scrimmage is the activity of the games of Canadian football and American football during which one team tries to advance the ball or to score, and the other team tries to stop them or take the ball away. after intermission, Blue fumbled and Sacramento State recovered. But the Hornets helped out when Scott Brown Scott Brown may refer to:
And on the Matadors' next play from scrimmage, Geoff Snowden fumbled and Nick Donati recovered. On the next play Roberts took an inside handoff Switching a cellular phone transmission from one cell to another as a mobile user moves into a new cellular area. The switch takes place in about a quarter of a second so that the caller is generally unaware of it. , cut left and raced 31 yards to give Sacramento State a 28-7 lead 2:32 into the second half. ``We came in relaxed. We knew we were a better team, and they knew we were a better team and we came in and expected them to give us the game,'' Brady said. ``The fumbles, it gets you frustrated. We're out there trying to execute, but we kept losing the ball.'' CSUN vs. SAC. ST.: A CLOSER LOOK THE HERO Slippery Sacramento State running back Charles Roberts demonstrated why defensive coordinators will spend many sleepless nights for the next few years. The 5-foot-6 sophomore bettered his average by 48 yards as he ran for 231 and three touchdowns. THE GOAT Will Cal State Northridge's offense please stand? The Matadors fumbled six times, lost four of them and turned the ball over five times. Add to it 31 yards of offense during the final 22 minutes of the first half as Sacramento State built a 21-7 lead. STAT OF THE GAME How does five turnovers sound? How about six fumbles? Or four lost fumbles? Take your pick. Any portion of the turnover category works fine. The Matadors led the Big Sky Conference in turnover ratio and fumbled six times in its first five games. But the six fumbles isn't a school record. Twice the Matadors coughed it up seven times in a game, and lost it five times. The last was 15 years ago. QUOTE OF THE GAME ``I'm extremely angry right now, and I have to learn to deal with that better. I cannot accept the performance put on tonight.'' - Ron Ponciano NOTEBOOK: Borges relives old memories in Sacramento It's not so much the return to Hornet Stadium Hornet Stadium is a 21,195 seat football stadium in Sacramento, California. It is located at Sacramento State. It was completed in 1969. It is the home football stadium of the Sacramento State Hornets. as it is the return to Sacramento State's campus that tweaks the innards of Cal State Northridge running backs coach Keith Borges. Borges graduated from Sacramento State in 1992 and was a defensive assistant with the Hornets for a year. ``This was a very emotional experience for me, and not just because of the university,'' Borges said. ``It was a real tough time in my life. When I came here, I came from a junior college (Los Medanos) and I actually flunked out of school, which is why I stopped playing football. ``I had a severe learning disability. I had to get totally re-educated, so I went through a four-year re-education program in the junior college system. When I got here, I was married, and I was fighting that same battle, so I really didn't get a chance to enjoy the college lifestyle.'' Borges left Sacramento State before completing his course load, but returned to school and earned a bachelor's degree in business. ``My oldest daughter (Amanda) was just born that summer, July 1983, and when I left here in the spring of 1986 my second daughter (Meghan) was born,'' said Borges, in his first year at CSUN. ``That's one of the reasons I left school a semester short of getting my degree. I had to support a family. ``There's definitely some emotional attachment to coming back here.'' Moment of silence: There was a somber moment for CSUN's offensive line prior to the game when they found out Julio Alcala's mom, Consuelo, died Friday afternoon after a long bout with leukemia leukemia (l  kē`mēə), cancerous disorder of the blood-forming tissues (bone marrow, lymphatics, liver, spleen) characterized by excessive production of immature or mature .
Alcala, CSUN's starting center, didn't make the trip to Sacramento State. In fact, he's been at his San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. home since last Sunday. Travel burden: Immediately after Saturday's game, CSUN hopped on a bus and embarked on the 400-mile, seven hour trip back to campus. It's a way of cutting travel expenses. The Big Sky Conference is expected to do its part in the year 2000. This year Montana and Montana State played at CSUN, meaning the Matadors will travel to those schools next year. Those are two of the more expensive trips in the Big Sky, and it causes a marked fluctuation in CSUN's travel budget. So beginning in 2000, the schedule will change so CSUN hosts one of the Montana schools and travels to the other one each season. Recruiting focus: Head coach Ron Ponciano said CSUN's recruiting budget checks in at nearly $4,000, which is obscenely low. But he also said CSUN will narrow its recruiting focus. ``We recruit a few counties out (of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. ) and that's okay,'' Ponciano said. ``We're going to start restricting our recruiting areas a little smaller just because we want to take more ownership in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, .'' - Brian Dohn CAPTION(S): 2 Photos, Box PHOTO (1) LEWIS BLANTON CSUN's freshman linebacker said his team overlooked Sacramento State, which forced five turnovers to upset the No. 16 Matadors. (2) BORGES BOX: CSUN vs. SAC. ST.: A CLOSER LOOK (see text) |
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