ANTELOPE VALLEY COMEBACK SPUTTERS; SANTA ANA TAKES CHARGE AFTER MARAUDERS RALLY IN THIRD QUARTER : SANTA ANA 31, ANTELOPE VALLEY 20.

Byline: Chris Cocoles Daily News Staff Writer

For two third-quarter possessions, Santa Ana College had no answers for Antelope Valley College's offense. Marauders quarterback Brad Norris was slicing up the Dons' somewhat soft pass defense, orchestrating two 80-yard touchdown marches to make up for an anemic first half and bite into two 10-point deficits.

``We wanted to come out and not be embarrassed,'' Norris said.

But that was about it for the Marauders in their 31-20 McDonald's Community College Bowl loss to Santa Ana on Saturday night.

Santa Ana (8-3) began to put pressure on Norris, whose red-hot, third-quarter turned almost as cold as the frigid conditions at Marauder Stadium.

``They were really taking it to us in the second half,'' Dons linebacker Jake Ehlen said. ``Coach (Dave Ogas) got on us.''

Norris went 6 for 8 on drives that ended with touchdowns by Tyree Booker (a 2-yard run) and Ronnie Blair (a 4-yard pass from Norris).

``We started hitting guys in the flats and we were successful with short, conservative passes,'' said AVC coach Brent Carder, whose Marauders finish the season 7-4.

The first half saw the Marauders sputter against an eight-man front that crippled their running game.

Once the Marauders established an offensive game plan, the Dons quelled it with a better one across the line of scrimmage.

``When they started throwing the ball we went to our blitz package. There are some pretty good passing teams in our league so we do that a lot,'' Ogas said.

The Marauders never seriously threatened again, save for one 45-yard push that died at the Santa Ana 27, when, not surprisingly, Norris was pressured into underthrowing Blair on a fourth-down play.

``It's always tougher when they're bringing more people at you,'' said Norris, who finished 12 of 24 for 154 yards and two late interceptions and was named AVC's game MVP.

Even with AVC's surge to begin the third, the Dons never relinquished their lead, answering Booker's and Blair's touchdowns two Tramel Robinson scores.

The second of those was particularly heartbreaking for the Marauders after they had recovered a Robinson fumble on their own 19.

Running back Lafayette Bailey, held to a minus-10 yards rushing on nine carries in his final AVC appearance, misplayed a pitch and couldn't pick it up before Leafi Nefi recovered for the Dons.

Three plays later Robinson high-stepped it into the end zone from the 8 to seal it.

``I really thought we were going to win the football game when we recovered the fumble,'' Carder said. ``But then we fumble it right back and they score that touchdown. Down by 11, we had to take some chances.''

AVC needed 16 offensive plays to collect a first down in the first half. The Marauders managed just 33 yards, two through the air.

Their only score came courtesy of the special teams. With Chris Ludstrom back to punt, the Marauders sent seemingly everyone through the front wall, with Eric Glover smothering the kick and Mike Kott falling on the ball in the end zone.

But there was little else in the first-half excitement department for a sparse gathering of Marauders fans, who were outdrawn by those who made the trip from Orange County on a damp, chilly evening. The latter group of supporters not only saw an aggressive Dons defense but an offense that moved the ball at will. Santa Ana produced 257 yards of total offense in the first half in taking a 17-7 lead into the break.

With the Dons leading 10-7 in the second quarter, receiver Rob Caston beat Kott, a linebacker, on a post pattern for a 34-yard pass from Archie Lappin to the 1 that set up another Robinson touchdown.