MONDAY NIGHT SOCAL BOWL: HORNETS OUTRUN THE TIGERS IN THE RAIN 45-30

On a rain-splattered Monday night at Sherbeck Field, the No. 11 Football Hornets closed out the 2025 season with a statement victory running past No. 13 Riverside City College 45-30 in what was a high-octane Southern California Bowl.

The win puts a positive spin on the Hornet's 2025 campaign with an overall record of 8-3 handing Head Coaches Phil Austin and Brian Crooks their first bowl game victory since taking over the program in 2024. The proud Tigers finish their season with a respectable 7-4 record.

The Tigers and Hornets have a long history on the gridiron battling one another since 1921. Fullerton won that first matchup 28-6, however Riverside is one of the rare programs to have the all-time series on its side at 31-40-1, including tonight's win.

Riverside drew first blood at 6:34 in the opening quarter when Kayvion Sibley ran in a 21-yard touchdown to cap a 95-yard drive. A 38-yard field goal by Timothy Tynan pushed the Tigers ahead 10-0 by the 4-minute mark.

The rain, however, did not slow the Hornets as the team responded with a quickly with a 6-yard rushing touchdown by QB Jack Schierholz to make it 10–7.

The momentum shifted Fullerton's way in the second quarter when Schierholz scored again on an amazing mid-air collision that forced the quarterback into helicopter spin into the endzone from 8 yards out. It was a statement drive that went 79 yards putting Fullerton in the driver's seat at 14-10 by halftime.

Fullerton welcomed the third quarter with an impressive run by Fred Hunter, who broke loose for a 26-yard touchdown that gave FC a 21-10 advantage at 13:29.

The Hornets went on to add another score at 8:39 on another Schierholz touchdown (his third of the night) from 3-yards out to make it 28-10.

Riverside answered quickly on a Bryan Wilson 17-yard touchdown run at 6:44, but two minutes later FC struck again thanks to a pretty 10-yard rushing touchdown by OJ Jones.

In the fourth, the Tigers proved that they still had some bite left adding another score at 11:38 when Dominic Cox caught a 1-yard pass from Wilson keeping within reach at 35-24.

The Hornet defense forced a safety knabbing 2 points, and then on the ensuing drive, hit paydirt when Fred Hunter broke loose for a 61-yard touchdown breaking the game open for Fullerton at 45-24 with four minutes left in the game.

With the game in Fullerton's favor, Riverside snuck in one more touchdown with 46 seconds left on a 20-yard pass from Jared Doolittle to Donovan Ferguson.

Upon getting the ball back on a Tiger onside attempt, the Hornets simply took a knee and let the final seconds run off the clock to secure the Southern California Bowl victory.

Fred Hunter finished with a monster night with 23 carries for 173 yards and 2 TDs. OJ Jones added 9 carries for 96 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Jack Schierholz carried the ball 26 times for 89 yards with 3 TDs to lead the Hornets.

While the offense controlled the scoreboard, the Hornet defense came through with clutch stops and backfield pressure with Ethan Charpentier led all defenders with 11 tackles. Josh Grethen posted 8 tackles, and Nathan Lewis added 6 tackles and a sack. Xander Chisolm broke up 4 passes, while Leonard Adams added 5 pass breakups holding the Tigers to 149 total passing yards.

2025 Southern California Bowl Awards
MVP: Jack Scheirholz
Player of the Game: Ethan Charpentier

*Photo by Kaysea Luna