Roundup: Offensive explosion leads CC to D-I playoff win; others play nailbiters
The Central Catholic High football team has made its way up the ranks of the Sac-Joaquin Section over the years, winning championships in Divisions V, IV, III and II along the way.
Friday night, the Raiders (7-4) played their first postseason game of the season after being moved up to Division I by the section.
The tougher non-league schedule coach Roger Canepa and his staff put together seemed to pay off as the fifth-seeded Raiders blew out No. 12 Stagg High, 58-19.
Mario Savalla III got things rolling, intercepting a Delta Kings pass attempt to end their opening drive which Tyler Jacklich converted with one of his four rushing touchdowns. Xavier Deep’s extra point put the Raiders ahead 7-0 before two minutes ran off the clock.
Brooklyn Cheek kept the Raiders’ defensive momentum going, securing the team’s second first-quarter interception as Central Catholic ended the first with a 23-0 lead.
A 21-point second quarter helped the Raiders extend their lead to 44-0 at halftime.
The Delta Kings scored two touchdowns in the third quarter and one in the fourth, but Benny Padilla and Roland Brown answered with rushing touchdowns of their own to keep the game out of reach.
Central Catholic travels to Metropolitan league champion Monterey Trail (8-2) next week.
Division III
No. 5 Merced 37, No. 12 Ceres 15: The Bulldogs’ season came to an end at the hands of the Bears. Merced led 27-9 at the half and didn’t look back. They scored nine points in the first quarter, but couldn’t score again until less than three minutes were left in the game. Ceres graduates more than 25 seniors.
No. 10 Roseville 28, No. 7 Oakdale 21: The Mustangs were forced to rally after trailing 20-7 at halftime to Roseville. Fourteen unanswered points in the third put Oakdale ahead 21-20. Brandon Graydon and Joel Bradley connected on a 74-yard bomb for the deciding touchdown and forced an interception to end the Mustangs’ final drive.
Division V
No. 8 Ripon 35, No. 9 Rosemont 30: It looked like Ripon’s season would end in the first round after it went into halftime trailing 24-7 and finished the third quarter in a 30-14 hole. Xzavier Clark scored on rushing and receiving touchdowns in the fourth quarter to give Ripon the lead. They scored the game winning touchdown with 5.8 seconds left, leaving no time for Rosemont to mount a comeback.
Division VI
No. 7 Twelve Bridges 36, No. 10 Modesto Christian 32: The Crusaders were unable to advance to the second round after returning to the postseason for the first time since 2018. They led up 32-30 with nine minutes left in the fourth but a turnover on downs lead to the Raging Rhinos scoring what would be the game-winning touchdown with seven minutes remaining.
