No. 20 College of the Canyons football suffered a 17-13 road loss to No. 6 El Camino College on Sept. 6, with the Cougars nearly overcoming a 14-point second-half deficit despite committing five turnovers in the game.

Canyons (0-2) trailed 17-3 with 3:36 to go in the third quarter before posting a pair of fourth quarter scores.

Freshman wide receiver Jomar Adams brought in a 38-yard touchdown pass from Jazel Riley IV in the opening moments of the fourth quarter for the Cougars’ only end zone trip of the evening. The touchdown catch capped a 10-play, 75-yard drive for Canyons.

Later in the quarter freshman kicker Justin Assadi booted a 23-yard field goal to inch the Cougars even closer at 17-13 with just over eight minutes to play.

Assadi also converted on a 31-yard field goal attempt in the second quarter that tied the game at 3-3 heading into halftime. Later in the game he made his only PAT attempt.

After forcing the El Camino offense into a quick three-and-out, Canyons stalled out offensively but came away with a special teams turnover when Mylan Walker was able to pounce on a Warrier’s fumble, retaining possession for COC in ECC territory.

Walker also collected eight total tackles in the contest and was named the Cougars’ Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts.

Canyons got as close as the ECC 33-yard line in its comeback bid before Riley was intercepted to end that threat.

Riley finished the game five-of-18 for 69 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Logan Scarlett started for COC and went four-of-seven for 60 yards and two picks. Three of those interceptions came in the second half. The Cougars also lost a Dane Dunn fumble early in the game.

Dunn was otherwise productive with 47 rushing yards coming on 14 attempts. He also caught a ball in the game and was named Offensive Player of the Game.

Kickoff specialist Dylan Gomez was the Special Teams Player of the Game. He netted 187 yards on three kickoffs, an average of 62.3 yard per kick.

El Camino opened up a 10-3 lead with a 17-yard touchdown catch by Mark Baker with five minutes to play in the third quarter. Warriors quarterback Andrew Maushardt was 12-of-22 for 157 yards in the game.

ECC also scored on a seven-yard touchdown run by running back Azeon Nelson late in the third quarter. That sequence followed a Canyons interception which set the Warriors up on the Cougars’ 12-yard line.

COC freshman Adonte Medley tied for the team lead with eight total tackles, including 1.5 for loss. Brandon Bryant and Tory Cabral both ended the game with seven tackles, with Bryant also credited with 1.5 for loss. Seifana Langi recorded the only sack for Canyons to go with three tackles.

COC won the time of possession battle but was outgained by the Warriors with 344 yards of total offense. ECC running back Jaden Moore finished with 154 rushing yards on 19 attempts.

Canyons will next host Riverside City College in its home opener on Saturday, Sept. 13. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. with that game being livestreamed to fans free of charge on the award-winning Cougars Sports Network.

Stay up to date on all this season’s action by visiting COCAthletics.com and on social media at @COCathletics on X, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube.