With 93 yards and a little more than five minutes separating his team from victory, Newbury Park High quarterback Colby Cameron didn't have to reach far for inspiration.

"I thought about the defense," he said. "They were awesome. They had played so well, especially in the second half. I knew we couldn't let them down. It was time for the offense to step up and win the game."

Locked in a 20-20 deadlock, facing Oak Park's own stalwart defense, Cameron and the Panthers' offense delivered.

Cameron completed 7 of 10 passes in a 12-play, 93-yard series, including a 25-yard touchdown toss to Phillip Muscarello with 1:09 remaining to present Newbury Park with a stirring 26-20 victory over host Oak Park High on Thursday night.

For a Panthers offense still looking to find top gear on the eve of the Marmonte League race, the final drive was a revelation. Included was a vital fourth-and-10 hookup when Cameron found Danny Diefenthaler for a 13-yard connection to the Oak Park 25-yard line.

"It's a big win for us," said Cameron. "It definitely gives us a lot of confidence heading into the start of Marmonte League next week. We've been getting a lot of respect from everybody, so we wanted to play like it."

Afterward, the Panthers celebrated like it was a playoff victory in September. Actually, it seemed just like that against an Oak Park team that is ranked No. 2 in the CIF-SS Northwest Division and last week handled Marmonte League foe Royal, 35-0.

"It feels totally like the playoffs," said senior linebacker Chance Flaaten. "We feel like a lot of people are calling us a good team. We felt like we had to play like it against another good team. It's a great win for this team."

Oak Park High coach Dick Billingsley called it a "super high school game."

Matching two teams with 2-0 records, the game played out like two teams bent on winning their respective leagues.

Cameron completed 17 of 32 passes for 228 yards, but was only 1 of 8 with one interception in the second half before catching fire on the final march.

Vincent Muscarello caught four passes for 111 yards, and pulled Newbury Park into a 20-20 tie with his 82-yard kickoff return with 1:39 left in the third period.

Oak Park's physical running game produced 242 yards on the ground, including an 82-yard dash by Sean Westgate that gave the Eagles a short-lived 20-13 lead with 1:55 left in the third period.

Kyle Shorten picked up 59 yards on 14 carries. Quarterback Kyle Andrus was 7 of 19 for 146 yards.

The two sides hooked up in a seesaw first half that ultimately produced a 13-13 tie at halftime.

Oak Park's Brett Zeolla capped off a seven-play, 61-yard opening drive with a 25-yard touchdown run.

Newbury Park's Chris Brown, who notched 84 yards on 20 carries, tied the game in the second period with a 1-yard scoring run.