San Marcos football had its fourth-quarter lead slip away in a 22-21 loss to Del Sol on Friday in Oxnard.
The Royals are now 0-2 to begin the season heading into a road matchup against Channel Islands next week.
San Marcos opened the scoring in the first quarter with a pick-six by Kevan Vatan to take an early 7-0 advantage.
However, Del Sol answered back later in the quarter with a touchdown of its own and a successful two-point conversion on top to snag a slim 8-7 lead.
The Royals punched back just seconds into the second quarter, as Isaac Murillo hauled in a touchdown pass from Hayden Feleay. SM then went for two and converted, bringing its lead to 15-8.
The Jaguars rounded out the first-half scoring with a rushing touchdown with just under two minutes left in the half, converting another two-point attempt to take a 16-15 advantage into the break.
The San Marcos defense came through with a shutout of Del Sol in the third, while Caden LaPlante rushed his way into the end zone to give the Royals a 21-16 lead into the fourth following a failed two-point conversion.
The two teams continued to battle throughout the fourth, but the Jaguars came away with a late touchdown to jump back ahead, 22-21. They held the lead for the rest of the game, sending the Royals home with a loss.
Friday night’s win was Del Sol’s second in its two-year program history and its first-ever home victory.
