Oakdale steamrolls Vista, will stay home next week
The Oakdale High School football program has reached a level where, year after year, it leaves familiar opponents grasping at air.
Such was the case Friday night when the Mustangs, rushing for 439 yards, dismissed Vista del Lago of Folsom 42-14 in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III quarterfinals.
It is the third time in four years Oakdale has knocked Vista out of the playoffs.
That the Mustangs (11-1) gradually rushed another foe to submission wasn’t necessarily a surprise. A new wrinkle was a defense that limited Vista (8-4) to seven points before a running clock ticked off the final 4:49.
“Maybe our best performance on defense in the last three years,” coach Trent Merzon said. “We made some big stops.”
While the Mustangs stalled in the third quarter, their defense protected a 21-7 lead. Vista, featuring a talented quarterback in Matt Jimison and a team rolling with an eight-game winning streak, was stopped three yards short of the goal line.
A later threat was doused by the second of two sacks by Wyatt Hjelm. Fortified, Oakdale – regaining its swagger – ran off three straight touchdowns.
Oakdale received even better news at game’s end. Second-seeded Sierra, the Valley Oak League co-champion which handed the Mustangs their only loss, was upset by Rio Linda 49-44.
Which means Oakdale gets a semifinal date at home against Rio Linda the night after Thanksgiving.
“It really doesn’t matter what you want. You get what you get,” Merzon said. “We would have been thrilled to go back to Sierra, but there’s nothing like a Thanksgiving playoff game here.”
The Oakdale attack strengthened as the game wore on. Brock Whiting’s 59-yard touchdown gallop started the onslaught. Darus Nelson (13 carries, 150 yards) accounted for two touchdowns while fullback Frankie Trent bulled forward for important gains.
Quarterback Adam Olsen waited until 8:07 was left before he attempted his only pass – a 23-yarder to a quite-alone Bobby Depuy for a touchdown.
But Olsen’s most critical play happened with 42 seconds left in the half. Rolling to his left, he saw a crease and – following downfield blocks by his receivers – sprinted home 52 yards for a 21-7 lead. That answered Vista’s touchdown, a dive by Colby Carrera (31 carries, 125 yards) only 24 seconds before.
“We called only about five passes. The rollout was a pass. I just made a play with my feet,” Olsen said. “We run a bunch to get them crowding the box and guessing. That’s how we play.”
Bee staff writer Ron Agostini can be reached at ragostini@modbee.com or (209) 578-2302. Follow him on Twitter @ModBeeSports.
This story was originally published November 21, 2014 at 11:30 PM with the headline "Oakdale steamrolls Vista, will stay home next week."