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SANTA ROSA — Cardinal Newman left no doubt on a soggy Friday night that it deserved a spot in next week’s California Interscholastic Federation state football championship games.
In a way, the 42-7 rout of visiting Los Gatos in the NorCal Division 3-AA regional is redemption for how last season preemptively ended on a coin flip — a choice forced upon the Cardinals due to cancellations caused by the Camp Fire near Chico.
“It’s much better than a coin flip,” Cardinal Newman junior Shane Moran said. “This feels great.”
“Our goal for the game was to kind of just to do it for last year’s seniors,” Cardinal Newman linebacker Hunter Graniss said. “Because we know we could’ve gone all the way last year.”
Now with that possibility turned into a reality, Cardinal Newman (13-1) will next host SoCal champion El Camino-Oceanside, which defeated Temecula Valley 34-18.
It’s a third appearance in a state final for the Cardinals, who finished as runner-up in 2006 and 2008.
“It’s humbling, it’s inspiring,” Cardinal Newman quarterback Jackson Pavitt said. “I’m excited. We gotta get after it and start working. I’m ready.”
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Los Gatos (12-2), the Central Coast Section Division II champion, caught an early break as sophomore Jake Ripp recovered a fumble on the second snap of the game.
But after the defense forced a turnover on downs just outside the red zone, Cardinal Newman couldn’t be stopped as it found the end zone on four consecutive possessions.
“They were tougher than the elements, for sure,” Los Gatos coach Mark Krail said of his opponent. “They were well-coached and played extremely fast and physical — and we didn’t match that.”
Pavitt, a dual-threat QB, used his legs to cross the goal line on a 1-yard sneak and a 29-yard keeper for a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
The opening play of the second quarter was a 3-yard TD run by Moran, a two-way player who finished with game-highs of 21 carries for 134 yards.
On the ensuing kickoff, Cardinal Newman kicker Ethan Kollerborn, who booted a game-winning field goal last week as time expired in the North Coast Section Division IV final, recovered a fumble. That set up a 21-yard fade from Pavitt to wide receiver Giancarlo Woods with 11:04 left in the second quarter to make it 28-0.
“That was a strong team, we’ve been prepping hard all week, but more importantly we’ve been prepping since January,” said Pavitt, who finished 6-of-10 for 97 yards through the air and also ran it nine times for 79 yards in the downpour. “All the work we’ve put in, we trust it, we’re going to let it pay out. Focus on ourselves and the rest will take care of itself.”
After going three-and-out for a third consecutive time, Los Gatos pounced on another fumble near midfield.
But the momentum quickly shifted back in favor of the Cardinals courtesy of the defense, as Graniss intercepted a pass and sprinted 44 yards to the house with 7:07 left before halftime.
Cardinal Newman went into the locker room comfortably ahead 35-0.
“I’ve kind of got to give that out to the coaches,” Graniss said. “We’ve been practicing all week, going through the keys. The coaches put in so much time and effort. It’s 100 percent them telling us what to do, being in the right place at the right time.”
Out of the locker room, Los Gatos quarterback Yost Girvan burst out for 62 yards and into the red zone. But following another turnover on downs, Cardinal Newman marched 90 yards on 11 plays, a drive culminated by another TD run from Moran, this one from a yard out.
The Wildcats avoided a shutout on a 5-yard score by Mason Holbrook midway through the fourth quarter with the running clock already in effect.
“We talked at halftime about finishing it up,” Krail said. “We sputtered all night long, but it was nice to get in the end zone. That felt good.”
He added: “We’re going to hang our hat on that magical season that we were able to win 12 games and put a CCS banner on the wall.”
Meanwhile, Cardinal Newman isn’t satisfied after taking care of some unfinished business from a year go.
“No reward, yet,” Moran said. “We’ve still got one more to go.”
“It’s going to be crazy,” Graniss said. “You can’t ask for nothing more as a senior. It’s an unbelievable experience.”
