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SAN MATEO — For a third consecutive weekend, Serra found itself trailing in the first half. At least in Saturday’s Central Coast Section Division I semifinal, the top-seeded Padres managed to go into the locker room without facing a deficit against No. 5 Wilcox.
“It’s one thing to start fast, and we would love to do that,” Serra coach Patrick Walsh said. “It’s more important to finish.”
In front of its home crowd, Serra forced two fumbles, recovered a tipped backward pass for a touchdown and made a goal line stand during the second half of a 27-14 victory to extend its season.
Next up for the Padres (11-1) is the CCS title game against No. 2 Valley Christian (11-1) on Nov. 30 at Independence High in San Jose.
It’s a rematch of the Nov. 2 meeting between West Catholic Athletic League rivals in which Serra prevailed 10-0 in San Mateo.
“They’re a great football team whose only blemish is us,” said Walsh, who in the morning reached out to Valley Christian coach Mike Machado, fresh off his 28-7 win over No. 3 St. Ignatius in Friday’s other semifinal. “So I’m anticipating a very angry and focused Warrior football team. It’s going to be a hard game.”
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Wilcox (9-3), a 2018 state champion, bookended its season with losses to both Division I finalists — beginning with a 23-13 defeat at Valley Christian on Oct. 30.
It’s the only public school to make it out of the opening round of the Division I playoffs after last week’s 42-35 overtime thriller at No. 4 Menlo-Atherton.
“I told the seniors they were a program-changing class,” Wilcox coach Paul Rosa said. “I know it’s tough right now, but that’s a fact. This program has never been to where it is, and they’re a big part of that.”
One of those seniors is Paul M. Rosa, the coach’s son.
The 5-foot-8, 180-pound running back, who still doesn’t have a scholarship offer, broke loose for a 55-yard run on the team’s first play from scrimmage. He scored the game’s first touchdown from 5 yards out with 8:37 left in the first quarter, then found the end zone again on a 49-yard burst 42.1 seconds remaining in the game.
Rosa finished with 28 carries for 173 yards, plus four catches for 45 yards.
“That’s going to be a tough one,” the elder Rosa said after being asked what it’s going to be like not to share the sideline with his son. “Not just because he’s such a good player, but you take for granted the time you get to spend together, hours and hours a day, and then you’re not going to have him at all. Definitely going to miss that, for sure. Hopefully later on I can go back and reflect on really how lucky I was to have that.”
One of the reasons for Serra’s sluggish starts over the past month is the collarbone injury for senior quarterback Daylin McLemore that required surgery.
The Padres turned to sophomore Dominique Lampkin, who finished 12 of 23 for 92 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also ran for 41 yards.
The first TD pass came on a rollout into a tight window with 10:56 left in the second quarter, a 5-yard catch by Nate Sanchez.
“Him and trust each other a lot,” Sanchez said. “We grew up together, so I have probably one of the best relationships on the team with him.”
A low snap on a punt resulted in the turnover on downs that set up Serra’s first score, which led to a 7-all draw at halftime.
Wilcox, which also lost a fumble recovered by Serra’s William Mauer in the first quarter, struggled to gain any momentum in the second half. Its first five possessions:
• fumble recovered by defensive end Nusi Malani;
• punt after three-and-out;
• punt after three-and-out;
• fumble recovered by defensive lineman Sioeli Helu;
• backward pass tipped by Terence Loville, recovered by Malakai Hoeft at 2-yard line for a touchdown to make it 27-7 with 7:31 left in the game.
“Nothing was said at halftime,” Sanchez said. “We had to continue to play ball, continue to play our brand of Padre football and we had to win the third (quarter). We come out with that mentality every game.”
Walsh gave much of the credit to defensive coordinator Steven Monsef, the rest of his staff, and the field position gained from Damon Lewis’ rugby-style punts.
“They’ve played their best football late,” Walsh said of the defense and special teams. “They’ve all stepped up their game legitimately since Daylin went out a few weeks ago. It’s a wonderful to see kids playing so hard on defense.”
On offense, Serra sophomore Hassan “the missil3” Mahasin broke the halftime deadlock on a 32-yard blast up the middle with 3:17 left in the third quarter. On the ensuing drive, Mahasin went in motion on third-and-goal and caught a forward flip from Lampkin for a 7-yard TD for a 20-7 lead with 1.5 seconds to go before the fourth quarter.
“The missile launched a few times today,” Walsh said. “He’s a heck of a talent. He gets downhill and he’s an elusive runner with speed. I’m glad he’s a sophomore.”
For a fourth straight week, the Padres performed better in the second half.
Walsh has a theory.
“Our goal at the beginning of the year was to be a tough organization, and toughness comes in many forms,” he said. “In this part of the year, it’s mental toughness more so than physical toughness.”
His players tend to agree.
“We started in January, preparing not for one first half, not for the second half, but 48 minutes of football,” Sanchez said. “It came down to our leaders, our captains. We got this team together and we created a different vibe, a different culture. That was our aim and it shows throughout, from sophomores all the way to seniors.
“We’re a family. We always say that every break.”
