Sierra stuns Oakdale in wild game

By Richard T. Estrada
restrada@modbee.com

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OAKDALE -- With its star running back sitting in a hospital emergency room, it was up to Anthony Hall to lead Sierra High to the greatest victory in its 15-year history.

"We won this game for Jarrod (Daniels), and I think it showed that we're more than just one player," Hall said. "I was confident our last drive that we'd get close enough."

Hall drilled a 40-yard field with 1:25 left -- his third, and shortest, kick of the game -- to lift No. 5 Sierra to a 44-42 upset of top-ranked Oakdale.

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Oakdale (8-1, 5-1) had taken a 42-41 lead with 5:30 left, on Tim House's 13-yard TD and Kyle Derby's PAT kick. Even after Hall's field goal, the Mustangs had a final drive.

Quarterback Robert Stout, who had a breakout game after spending much of his season handing off to running backs, threw passes of 10, 8 and 25 yards to Nathan Madsen to reach the Sierra 32.

Stout spiked the ball, then threw a 5-yard pass to Vince Thompson -- but Thompson was tackled in bounds. That forced another spike on third down with 32 seconds to go.

Facing a fourth-and-5, the Mustangs sent out Derby for a 44-yard field-goal attempt. The kick was far enough, but it flat, never reaching the 10 feet in height required to go over the cross bar -- and the T-wolves began celebrating.

It was the first time Sierra (8-1, 5-1) had beaten Oakdale and means the T-wolves can clinch a Valley Oak League title by beating Weston Ranch at home next Friday.

Sierra will share the crown with the winner of the Oakdale-Sonora game, because both those teams are 5-1 in league. The winner will finish, and all three teams are playoff-bound.

After a crazy first half that saw Stout pass for 147 yards and three TDs -- unheard of numbers in the Mustangs' wing-T offense -- Sierra seized control in the third quarter. Hall kicked field goals of 50 and 45 yards, and returned an interception 93 yards to give his team a 38-21 lead late in the third quarter.

Daniels (24 carries, 124 yards, two TDs) had been knocked out of the game with 2:47 remaining, colliding with a defender on a short run. A late flag was thrown for an illegal hit to the head, and that helped keep the drive going and set up a Hall field goal.

In the next few minutes, Oakdale's emotioinally charged defense would make big plays -- and would watch their aggressiveness used against them. The officiating crew whistled 45 yards in penalties on Sierra's nextt drive, including a celebration call.

"They threw flag because our kids hugged after a sack," Oakdale coach Trent Merzon said. "We've got 4,000 screaming fans, and they throw flag for that. They told me they would do it again if we hugged."

Another celebration penalty against Oakdale's defense allowed Sierra to turn a third-and-10 from its own 30 into a first-and-10 at the 45 on the game-winning drive. A few short passes and runs, and Sierra was at the Oakdale 23 with 1:25 left in the game.

"I had been rushing my kicks earlier this year, so I reminded myself to slow down," Hall said. "It felt good off my foot and I just watched it go through."

Word arrived at the stadium, shortly after the furious finish, that Daniels had been cleared by doctors.

Merzon would like to see the play again, the one that resulted in Daniels' departure and the penalty.

It's a mismatch to have one player try to tackle the elusive Daniels in the open field, Merzon said, so his defense gang-tackled the tailback much of the night.

The officials let the emotion get the better of them, Merzon felt, and entered the game with an agenda.

"(Manteca coach Eric) Reis complained of a helmet-to-helmet week last week, and that was in the paper," Merzon said. "The officials read the paper, they read that, and they come in here looking for it."

Oakdale didn't help itself, comitting two turnovers: One returned by Hall for the interception and the other on a third-quarter kickoff. That second turnover led to Daniels' 1-yard-TD run, giving Sierra a 31-21 lead midway through the third quarter.

While the outcome leaves plenty of questions about Oakdale's defense, it answered the question of whether the Mustangs can pass the ball.