Oakdale runs past CCC champ Patterson to set up VOL Division III final
Two familiar playoff foes took the field as Oakdale hosted Patterson with a trip to the section championship on the line.
The top seeded Mustangs wasted no time making their presence felt, scoring on their first two possessions en route to a 33-7 win in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III semifinal.
“I’m just crazy proud of our kids, man,” head coach Trent Merzon said. “They just don’t flinch. We play our style of football. We get another week to just extend this period of our lives.”
Both teams are no strangers to playoff success. In 2017, the two sides met in a similar situation, No. 4 Patterson at No. 1 Oakdale, playing for a chance to advance to the title game. In 2019, the Mustangs hosted the Tigers in the second round of the Division IV playoffs, winning 67-21.
Only one player on the Oakdale roster had won a playoff game coming into this season. Senior quarterback Jackson Holt was a sophomore on varsity in 2019.
When asked about going back to the finals, Holt said, “It feels great. (We did) a lot of hard work to get to this point in the season. Not a lot of teams are left.”
Patterson (10-3) head coach Rob Cozart said this year’s matchup felt very similar to 2017, calling it déjà vu.
But they were hoping for a different result.
Patterson received the kickoff and looked ready to play. Tigers quarterback Jacob Guevarra connected with Austin Lucas down the left sideline for 47 yards on just their second play from scrimmage, but the drive stalled in the red zone and ended with a missed field goal attempt wide left.
Oakdale’s offense got started early with touchdown runs from Kevin Camelin and Garrison Gerber to put the Mustangs up 14-0 with 4 minutes, 53 seconds left in the first quarter.
Holt and Camelin connected on an 8-yard pass in the second quarter to put Oakdale ahead 20-0.
“We were just taking what the defense was giving us.” said Holt, who completed 12 of 18 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns.
The Mustangs’ defense was dominant once again. After coming into the game without allowing a point in a month, it held Patterson’s normally explosive offense oddly silent for the majority of the game.
“We run around, we play fast,” said Merzon on what makes Oakdale’s defense successful. “We’ve been playing tremendous the last couple of weeks.”
Camelin finished with 23 carries for 105 yards and two rushing touchdowns and one touchdown catch. He capped the Mustang scoring with an 18-yard run to after solid blocking opened up a hole on the right side of the defense.
The lone score for Patterson came in the second quarter. Guevarra scrambled through the middle of the pocket and exploded for a 65-yard run.
The loss for the Tigers doesn’t take away from what they accomplished this season, and Cozart let his team know that postgame.
“I told the guys after the game that you won a CCC title and 10 straight games, no one can take that from you.” Cozart said.
On the other side of the Division III bracket, Manteca beat Lincoln 27-3. The Buffaloes went down by a field goal in the second quarter before rattling off 27 unanswered points.
Oakdale and Manteca’s wins set up an all VOL Division III championship next Friday at St. Mary’s High School and a rematch of the 2017 section final, which Manteca won 34-17.
“Playing the Buffaloes is obviously special,” said Merzon, whose Mustangs beat Manteca 28-0 a few weeks ago. “A team we know really well and have tremendous respect for ... it’s an all Valley Oak League final. I have tremendous respect for the opponents in our league. This is the way it should be. (We’re) looking forward to seeing them.”
This story was originally published November 20, 2021 at 1:57 AM.
