VISTA – Maybe it was fitting for a game that included an interception return for a touchdown and three scoring plays of 50 yards or more to come down to one more big play. With 37 seconds remaining in Friday night's season opener, Mira Mesa defensive lineman Ledel Otey sacked Vista quarterback David Fisher in the end zone giving the No. 9 Marauders a 16-14 victory.

It was the sixth sack of the night for the Mira Mesa defense, which hassled Fisher from start to finish, forcing three turnovers.

“They changed up their defense, and that's a credit to them,” Vista head coach Dan Williams said. “They've got guys blitzing from all different angles, and that's a tough scheme to adjust for.”

The Marauders' pressure forced a pair of Fisher interceptions in the first half, the second of which glanced off Vista running back Jordan Alexander's shoulder and floated to Mira Mesa's Tyler Lehrke, who sprinted 48 yards in the other direction for the touchdown and a 7-0 lead.

“Our D-line was forcing their quarterback under pressure,” said Marauders defensive back Jerick Davis, who intercepted Fisher in the end zone and had another erased by a defensive holding call. He finished with 15 tackles.

Vista got on the scoreboard when Fisher finally got time to throw and found receiver Trevor McMahon with a 69-yard touchdown strike. McMahon got behind the Marauders defense and Fisher hit him in stride to tie the score 7-7 in the third quarter.

“If you don't get after their quarterback, he kills you,” Mira Mesa head coach Gary Blevins said. “When he got time, you saw he threw it differently.”

Running back Damian Williams, playing in his first game at running back, gave the Marauders the lead again on a 50-yard touchdown run to start the fourth quarter. Williams fumbled the hand-off from quarterback Kevin Ozier, but the ball bounced straight up off the ground and into Williams' hands, and he broke through the Panthers' defense for the score.

“I was very surprised,” said Williams, who finished with 125 yards on 20 carries. “I just ran as fast as I could.”

Fisher brought the Panthers back to a 14-14 tie on a 20-yard touchdown scramble with 5:22 remaining, but the safety sealed the win for Mira Mesa.

“We think every game is the CIF championship,” said Davis, who helped force the final sack. “We knew the defense was going to have to make a play.”

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