CAMARILLO'S DEFENSE COMES UP BIG IN WIN VS. AGOURA CAMARILLO 20, AGOURA 14.

CAMARILLO - To fend off a final Agoura push on its side of the field, Camarillo High's defense didn't need the clutch sack or diving interception.

But the Scorpions' 20-14 victory Saturday night ended fittingly: Agoura was within sniffing distance of the score it had previously been denied so many times.

Joel Arias's desperation heave from the Scorpions' 33 landed harmlessly in the end zone as time expired. The Chargers (1-1) wasted three similar drives early.

``We lost the game in the first half,'' Agoura coach Charlie Wegher said. ``We blew all those opportunities when we had the ball in the red zone.''

The 7-7 halftime tie had Camarillo grateful to be so close and Agoura furious at what could have been a comfortable advantage.

The Chargers did cash in with Mike Coons running 13 yards for a touchdown after Matt Marx's interception of Scorpions quarterback Josh Howe.

But four other promising Agoura possessions ended without points. Senior defensive back Ryan Lapuz intercepted Arias twice - once after the Chargers had reached the Camarillo 14 and again after reaching the 20.

Another Agoura drive got as far as the Camarillo 7. But Jonathan Keihner sacked Arias on the 15 and Rob Kaufman's 32-yard field goal attempt sailed wide left.

``We stopped them three times inside the 30,'' Lapuz said proudly. ``They had some big plays on us, but our defense really held up when they had those chances to put some points on the board.''

Given a boost by the defense, the Scorpions diversified their offense in the third quarter.

Camarillo relied mostly on running back Marc Kawamoto in the first half. But the Scorpions' lone touchdown was a 38-yard pass from Howe to Brad Boyer with 59 seconds left in the first quarter.

Boyer made another big play in the third quarter when he eluded Chargers defensive back Alex Baird to convert a short pass from Garrett Barlow into a 75-yard touchdown to break the tie in the third.

The durable Kawamoto, replacing standout Loren Cerny, was Camarillo's only running back to carry the ball. The junior worked diligently to gain 126 yards on 31 attempts and scored the go-ahead touchdown from the 19 with 6:23 left in the game.

But the first win in the Charlie Festerling era was clinched by a defense that was consistently fighting miserable field position.

``We felt really fortunate to be going into halftime tied up,'' said Festerling, Camarillo's longtime offensive coordinator who succeeded retired Carl Thompson.

Agoura managed just 212 total yards but couldn't ask for better opportunities that weren't taken advantage of, particularly in the first half.

``Sure, we were frustrated,'' Wegher said of the Chargers' halftime mood. ``I thought we'd be OK. But we have a lot of work to do.''