Wild finish lifts Sonora to Sac-Joaquin Section football title

Bryan Craig let the Gatorade wash over him, soaking his jacket and pants.

“I’ll tell you what — it’s worth it,” the Sonora coach said as a swarm of photographers with long lenses closed in for the money shot.

Now picture this: Wyatt Faughnan clutched the Sac-Joaquin Section Division V banner in his hand and settled under the arm of quarterback and co-captain Sammy Page.

Their work was complete.

Their hearts were full.

Faughnan caught two touchdowns passes to highlight a furious flurry as the top-seeded Wildcats stunned No. 5 Bear River with a come-from-behind 42-30 victory at Elk Grove High on Saturday afternoon.

The Bruins jumped out to a 24-7 lead on Sawyer Britt’s 20-yard field with 5:26 left in the half, but Sonora scored the next 35 points, including the game-winner on a 40-yard grab by Faughnan early in the fourth.

“We were in a fight,” Faughnan said. “Football is a game of emotion. When you’re frustrated and angry like we were, you have to use that to your advantage.”

The Wildcats, winners of 12 straight, channeled that emotion into their first section title in 20 years. Sonora now awaits its CIF Northern California regional assignment.

“We’re going where no Sonora High team has gone — a Northern California championship,” Craig said to cheers.

Brett McCutchen rushed for a team-high 71 yards on 10 carries and scored two touchdowns.

The Mariposa High transfer also set up Sonora’s first score — a 1-yard dive by Nate Gookin in the first quarter — with a bulldozing, 25-yard run. McCutchen plowed through four Bruin defenders before he was finally dragged down at the 1.

That run epitomized the Wildcats’ will.

Sonora dedicated its season to former teammate Bryce Sanguinetti, who passed away tragically in August while attending a Cuesta College in Santa Barbara.

The Wildcats wore Sanguinetti’s No. 1 on the back of their helmets and leaned on his memory down 17 points in the first half on Saturday.

“This victory means everything,” said Faughnan, who finished with 147 yards of total offense. He had three catches for 93 yards and nine carries for 54 yards.

“It’s been an emotional season after we lost our former teammate Bryce. He was a tremendous friend and a great athlete, so we wanted to fight every game for him.”

Craig acknowledged the risk in dedicating a season to a fallen teammate. He worried the burden and pressure would get the best of his team. Those fears were alleviated with a fantastic finish in the division final.

Page engineered two scoring drives in the final four minutes of the first half to inspire hope. He dove in from the 1 with 4:01 left, and then after Kane Rodgers’ 44-yard interception return, he flipped a pass to Faughnan to make it 24-21 at the intermission.

The Wildcats completed the comeback with a similar pass play early in the fourth quarter. Mired in a defensive standstill, Page punished Bear River’s aggressive safeties.

As the safety creeped toward the line of scrimmage, Faughnan said the cagey left-handed quarterback changed the play. Page floated a pass down the middle, just clearing safety Kyle Wooner’s reach. Faughnan ran underneath it, securing a 28-21 lead with a 40-yard catch-and-run.

“We saw the safeties coming up, expecting us to run,” Faughnan said. “We audibled for a (hot route) and it was open every time.”

Sonora would never look back, celebrating a championship its chased for two decades.

The Wildcats reached the Division IV final last season and lost a shootout with eventual state champion Central Catholic.

For seniors like Page and Faughnan, that loss set the goal for this season. Sanguinetti’s tragic death made it an all-in challenge.

“It’s always a little scary when you dedicate a season to something like that,” Craig said. “You want to make sure you give it the proper respect, but this team made it a goal and got it done.”

It wasn’t pretty.

Miscues in the secondary and on special teams tilted the field in favor of Bear River early.

Quarterback Jason Voter connected on his first five passes, covering 185 yards as run-heavy Bear River attacked through the air. He had a 66-yard strike to Ben O’Lena to make it 14-0 in the first quarter and a 16-yard pass to Sean Gillis to make it 21-7.

Voter finished 16 of 28 for 285 yards and three touchdowns. The Bruins were picked off twice by Rodgers, who tied the school record with 11.

So potent early, Bear River’s offense was shackled by Sonora. Eight of the Bruins’ final nine possessions ended in a punt or turnover.

Sonora allowed just 39 rushing yards and sacked Voter six times.

“No one panicked. No one was yelling. There was a sense that ‘We got this,’ ” Craig said. “Once we got things figured out, we were fine.”

This story was originally published November 28, 2015 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Wild finish lifts Sonora to Sac-Joaquin Section football title."