Clovis North finishes 10-0 after defeating Central; Folsom fights back to win — Top 10 Northern California football roundup
Jackson Cinfel rushed for two touchdowns and McKay Madsen and Andrew Chavez rushed for one each as Clovis North defeated Central-Fresno 27-20 on Thursday to finish the regular season 10-0 while winning the Tri-River Athletic Conference.
The victory was ranked the No. 2 Northern California Game of the Week heading into the week and it didn't disappoint as Central, winners of three straight coming in, battled to the finish. The Grizzlies finished 7-3 and 3-2 in TRAC play. Clovis North finished 5-0 in TRAC play and will no doubt by the No. 1 seed heading into next week Central Section Division 1 playoffs. SEE STORY
Check back here throughout the night on the remaining nine games all played Friday.
The seven sections that make up Northern California are: Central, Central Coast, San Francisco, Oakland, North Coast, Sac-Joaquin and Northern.
10. Clovis 48, Clovis West 34
Maddox Merrill capped a late fourth-quarter rally with an 11-yard run giving Clovis (7-3) the wild back-and-forth win over Clovis West (5-5). With the score tied at 34-34, Noah Luginbill scored on a 3-yard run after he hauled in a 36-yard pass, to go up 41-34 with 2:34 left. Clovis recovered a fumble deep in Clovis West territor and Merrill capped the flurry and two-touchdown win in TRAC play. Deagan Rose, like he's done all year, was in the middle of most of the action with two passing touchdowns and three rushing for Clovis, according to Gabe Camarillo. Washington State-bound Landon Wright was spectacular as usual, including a 69-yard catch and run to tie the game at 34-34 for Clovis West.
Pregame: Tyler Patrick threw two touchdown passes to Washington State commit Landon Wright last week but Clovis West lost to Central. Clovis is also hungry after a 49-34 loss to Clovis East. Deagan Rose accounted for five touchdowns for Clovis.
9. Acalanes 34, Las Lomas 13
Acalanes is one of the hottest teams in Northern California, winning its sixth straight game and beating unbeaten Las Lomas in the process by scoring 20 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.
Pregame: The visiting Dons are 13-point favorites according to CalPreps despite an unbeaten record from the Knights, who last week broke an 11-game losing streak to Campolindo with a 45-42 victory. Sophomore QB Dylan Thomas threw for 347 yards and four touchdowns, three to Roman Mercado (6 catches, 204 yards) and the game-winner, a 34-yarder to Daniel Downes (10, 135) late in the fourth quarter. Acalanes and Las Lomas have split their last 10 meetings, though the Dons won last year’s game 42-0.
8. Hanford 27, Lemoore 13
Daniel Gomez threw three touchdowns to three different players to give host Hanford a 27-0 hafltime lead before Lemoore showed a lot of grit scoring two unanswered touchdowns in the second half. Gomez threw TD passes to Kourdey Glass (28 yards), Taveon Patterson (48) and Devin Marzett (10) to go up 27-0. Albert Richardson added a 27-0 yard TD run. Hanford improved to 9-1 while winning the coveted Milk Can.
Pregame: This is for the West Yosemite title. Hanford is coming off stirring 35-34 win over Mission Oak as Daniel Gomez threw for 289 yards and four touchdowns. Lemoore is coming off 29-0 win over Tulare Western as Dameon Hernandez rushed for two touchdowns and the defense recovered three fumbles.
7. St. Ignatius 28, Mitty 21
Jarious Hogan scored on a 36-yard run and Cam Jones quickly after added a 10-yard TD run as the host Monarchs (6-3) won their seventh straight in the series. Mitty was coming off a shutout win but St. Ignatius also scored on a Hogan 1-yard run and a 10-yard scoring strike from Soren Hummel to St. Geme. Mitty dropped to 5-4.
Pregame: In West Catholic Athletic League play, the host Wildcats have won six straight in the series, including 24-21 last season. Mitty recorded a 19-0 win over Bellarmine last week, its second shutout of the season. In their other six games, the Monarchs have allowed 207 points (34.5 per game). St. Ignatius must avoid a letdown from a resounding 38-14 win over rival Sacred Heart Cathedral last week.
6. Pittsburg 34, Liberty-Brentwood 13
Elijah Bow is not slowing down. After a 1,000-yard rushing season as a sophomore, Bow continued his big junior season by rushing 29 times for 174 yards and two touchdowns as the Pirates (9-0) rolled to the road victory. Marley Alcantara needed just nine completions to go for 158 yards and two touchdowns, one each to Noah Quesada (four catches, 80 yards) and Bobby Shaw (5, 78). Pittsburg will host Antioch on Nov. 4 with the Bay Valley Athletic League title up for grabs.
Pregame: Pittsburg WRs Noah Quesada and Makari Kenion have combined for 55 catches, 909 yards and 14 touchdowns. Liberty’s Jaxon Bell is one of Northern California top sophomore running backs with 127 carries for 1,176 yards and 21 touchdowns.
5. Folsom 28, Granite Bay 21
Ryder Lyons scored on a 2-yard run — his fourth of the game — midway through the fourth quarter to give Folsom (8-2) the hard-earned home win and another SFL crown. Granite Bay (5-5) led throughout the game before a fourth-quarter rally. A 35-yard TD pass from Dominic Cattolico to Carson Perry-Smith gave Granite Bay a 7-0 lead and it held that lead, 21-14 midway through the third quarter on an 8-yard TD run by Carter Johnson. But Lyons tied it 21-21 with a 4-yard run late in the third quarter, then scored the go-ahead TD with seven to go. The Folsom defense held from there, getting a key interception by Cade Dutton.
Pregame: Never mind Granite Bay's record, said Sacramento Bee longtime writer Joe Davidson. Its a superb running team, led by RB Carter Jackson and FB Isaiah Ene. Granite Bay has history, winning 31-21 at Folsom to close the 2021 season. Folsom's highly-touted sophomore QB Ryder Lyons accounted for eight touchdowns last week in a 61-21 win over Del Oro last week.
4. St. Francis 27, Riordan 20
A goal line stand and three forced turnovers helped the host Lancers (6-3, 5-1) take command of second place in the West Catholic Athletic League playoffs. Kingston Keanaaina's 3-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter broke a 20-20 tie. Riordan sophomore QB Michael Mitchell Jr. opened the scoring with a 6-yard TD run. His 40-yard touchdown pass to Cynai Thomas after a Keanaaina 10-yard TD run gave Riordan a 14-7 lead. A 30-yard FG by Christopher Han made the score 14-10 at halftime. Keanaaina's 39-yard touchdown put St. Francis up 17-10 and a 35-yard field goal from Han, makde it 20-14. Charlie Johnson scored from the 2, but Riordan's extra point was blocked, making it 20-20 heading into the fourth quarter. Riordan, after its second straight loss, dropped to 6-3, 4-2.
Pregame: A critical game for Central Coast Section Division 1 playoff seeding. The visiting Crusaders must rebound from a humbling 53-7 loss at Serra on Saturday, while St. Francis has won three straight since a 45-17 loss at Serra. The Lancers have won 13 straight in the series, including by shutout in five of the last six. This is a vastly different Riordan team that can match up physically with massive linemen that includes senior (270 pounds), junior Peter Langi (350) and sophomore Tommy Tofi (330), all who stand 6 feet, 7 inches.
3. Los Gatos 24, Wilcox-Santa Clara 21
Boxer Kopcsak-Yeung rushed for a 7-yard touchdown with less than a minute to play to pull out the wild PAL Bay Division title-clinching win. Wilcox (6-3, 4-1) had taken a 21-17 lead on a Jamontay Amataga 2-yard run only a few minutes earlier. The Chargers had dug themselves out of a 14-0 hole as Justin Mazzaferro had scored on a 4-yard run and Kopcsak-Yeung followed with a 10-yard TD return off a blocked punt. Elijah Walker cut the lead in half, 14-7, on a 13-yard run and then Tyson Bonilla tied things up late in the first half on a 3-yard TD pass to Will Ruff. Los Gatos improved to 7-2 and 4-0 in league play.
Pregame: Another evenly-matched series will decide the Peninsula Athletic League’s Bay Division. The teams have split the last six meetings, with Los Gatos winning the last three, 20-19, 41-18 and last season, 28-7. The visiting Wildcats have had six different players throw passes, 16 different rushers and 13 pass catchers. They are led by senior RB and DB Boxer Kopcsak-Yeung (766 rushing yards, 13 TDs). Wilcox dual-threat QB Tyson Bonilla has accounted for 1,423 yards and 14 TDs.
1. Rocklin 21, Oak Ridge 17
Nate Martin scored on a reverse run with 1:24 to play as Rocklin (9-1, 4-1) won an SFL instant classic. Oak Ridge (8-2, 3-2) had a chance to win it, but Gavin Correia sealed the win with an interception. Folsom won the league at 5-0, followed by Rocklin and Oak Ridge.
Pregame: Though Rocklin coach Jason Adams and Oak Ridge's Casey Taylor are best buds, this one figures to be an all out battle. If Granite Bay can beat Folsom on Friday, the winner here will clinch a share of the SFL crown, and both seek high playoff positioning.
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