Moorpark Readies for Marmonte Football Opener

It seems like every time Moorpark High faces Marmonte League rival Thousand Oaks, the outcome comes down to the very end, including a couple of overtime games the past two seasons, with Thousand Oaks winning 29-28 last year and the Musketeers winning 28-21 in 2009.

The teams meet again tonight at Moorpark, and no one knows quite what to expect—other than probably another nail biter.

“It’s as a tossup. It could come down to the wire, but it might not,” Moorpark quarterback Grant Rohach said. “We’ll just have to see how the game goes.”

It’s an important league opener because both are jockeying to finish among the top in a 10-team grouping that includes state powers Westlake, Oaks Christian and St. Bonaventure.

“Thousand Oaks is always a well-coached team, and they always have great players, so we’ll have to be at our best to win the game,” Rohach said.

That’s true, but this season the Lancers have been hit hard by graduation, bidding farewell to record-setting receiving Richard Mullaney and star quarterback Avondre Bollar. However, there appear to be exceptional players who’ve taken their place.

Thousand Oaks defeated Hueneme 62-0 in the season opener, as Clark Abourisk completed 8 of 10 passes for 225 yards and four touchdowns, Nathan DeBeikes rushed for 103 yards, L.J. Wiley had two receptions for 91 yards and two touchdowns, and Matt Singleton totaled 11 tackles.

Moorpark also succeeded in its season opener, coming from three points down in the fourth quarter to defeat Palos Verdes 21-10.

Grant Rohach passed for 123 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown to Kenny Feyh, and Aaron Stanton rushed for 75 yards and a 3-yard touchdown. Bobby Eckert put on the finishing touches with a 23-yard interception return for a touchdown.

Moorpark rallied after turning the ball over twice in the first half.

Some of Moorpark’s other top players are offensive linemen Anthony Peterson and Anthony Sarrocco, defesive lineman Brandon Hughes, receiver Alex Tolliver and linebackers Tony Mack and Christian Dearborn.