Rancho Cotate and Pinole Valley became the biggest surprises of the weekend as they advanced to the North Coast Section semifinals by knocking off higher seeds, while the remainder of the brackets pretty much followed script.
Three of the five defending section champions stayed alive heading into the semifinals, as De La Salle, Salesian, and Saint Mary's all won their opening games by comfortable margins. Here are a few of the other top storylines from last weekend.
Cal High Scores 21 Unanswered to Turn Back Liberty
Trailing 24-14 with 17 minutes remaining in the game, the Grizzlies dug deep and took control in the first-ever meeting between these schools. The Lions were seeking the first 10-win season in school history, but instead saw California advance to the semifinals for the third consecutive year, and fourth time in the last five seasons.
Jacob Wooldridge connected with Ryan Groleau, who finished the game with 132 yards receiving, to cut the margin to 24-21 entering the fourth quarter. Wooldridge then kept it himself on a 12-yard scramble on the Grizzlies' ensuing possession to put Cal in front for good.
California sealed the win on an eight-yard score from Simi Hingano following a Groleau interception of Liberty's Joseph Tolentino.
For Liberty, the game was reminiscent of its loss to Pittsburg last month, a game in which the Lions moved the ball well through the air in the first half to take the lead, but could not sustain that type of offensive attack in the final two quarters. Tolentino threw for 157 yards in the first half, but had just four completions for 19 yards in the second half.
Willie Williams drew first blood for the Lions when he took a Tolentino pass 80 yards into the end zone on the first play from scrimmage, and finished the game with five catches for 115 yards and two scores.
The biggest drive of the game, though, belonged to the Grizzlies, trailing 17-7 early in the second quarter, having been unable to slow down Liberty's offense to that point.
California took over eight minutes off the clock before halftime with a 15-play drive that culminated in a touchdown pass from Wooldridge to Peter Farina. The drive closed the gap at the break, swung momentum to the Grizzlies and what been a quiet home crowd, and allowed the defense to make halftime adjustments before facing the Lions' offense once again.
Analy Wins Wild One With Acalanes
This one was wild from the start, as Analy took a 7-0 lead just 26 seconds into the game. The game would see three ties and a one-point margin late in the third quarter before the Tigers finally pulled away for the win.
Casey Harrington hooked up with Tyler Henderson for three touchdowns for Acalanes, which never led but battled back all game long. The Dons could not keep up with Will Smith, Kerr Johnson, Jr., and Ja'Narrick James, though, who put on an offensive display in the quarterfinal win.
Smith completed 27 of 34 passes for 362 yards and four touchdowns, while James ran for 152 yards and two scores on 21 carries. Johnson hauled in 10 passes for 121 yards and two touchdowns.
Rancho Cotate Stuns Las Lomas
After beating previously undefeated Kennedy in the first round, Rancho Cotate opened the eyes of teams around the East Bay, knocking off the Knights, a team which had led Campolindo by 21 points during an earlier meeting.
The Cougars advanced to the semifinals by breaking open a 20-20 tie midway through the third period, scoring on four straight possessions. Oscar Nava put Rancho Cotate in front, 27-20, with a five-yard touchdown run after Las Lomas had tied the game, and quarterback Gunner Mefferd then found Chris Taylor-Yamanoha for a 15-yard score to widen the gap.
A Keven Nguyen field goal and a 41-yard scoring run by Carlos Franco finished the night for the Cougars.
Franco ran for 175 yards and two touchdowns, while Mefferd threw for 185 yards and three scores, two of them to Taylor-Yamanoha, who finished the night with eight catches for 98 yards. That helped the Cougars offset a big night by Las Lomas running back Zack Fulks, who had 131 yards and three touchdowns in the loss.
Casa Grande Advances to Semifinals for Second Straight Year
It was expected last season when the Gauchos were the number one seed after an undefeated regular season. But after starting 1-6 this season, including five straight losses to start the year, not many expected Casa Grande to be back among the final four teams playing at the end of the season.
The Gauchos knocked off league rival Maria Carrillo for the second time this season, by a combined margin of eight points in the two games. This time, it was a 17-14 win for Casa Grande, which picked up its fifth consecutive victory.
Head coach Trent Herzog's squad ran for 242 yards in the win, including 73 yards from Spencer Torkelson. Casey Longaker ran for 49 yards and both Gaucho touchdowns on just five carries, while senior kicker Matt Abramo had a crucial field goal to provide the winning margin, and also put three of his four kickoffs in the end zone for touchbacks.
Roundup Notes
