Prep football: Novato standouts help St. Vincent repeat as State champions
A dominating campaign for St. Vincent de Paul this season had a historic finish Friday evening as the Mustangs became the first Sonoma County football team to win back-to-back state titles.
Mason Caturegli scored twice to help give the Mustangs (14-1) a commanding lead, before Southern California champion Highland (11-5) scored twice in the final 3 minutes of the game to add some extra excitement. But St. Vincent of Petaluma — bolstered by a slew of Novato-based players on the roster — held on for a 25-23 victory at Long Beach City College to claim the CIF State Division 4-AA championship.
The Mustangs won the CIF D6-AA title last season, 27-6, against Wasco.
After taking a punch to the gut from Highland early on, the Mustangs stepped up their game behind Caturegli and junior quarterback Gabe Casanovas, one of a core of St. Vincent players from Novato.
A pair of big passes from Casanovas to Jack Ellis and Joseph Phillips quickly got the Mustangs deep into the Bulldogs’ territory. St. Vincent ran into a strong Highland defense and settled for a 28-yard field goal from senior Tyler Chelew, but that was enough to stoke the Mustangs’ fires.
After forcing Highland to punt the ball away, Casanovas gave the Mustangs excellent field position with a 32-yard run from scrimmage. He then handed the ball over to Caturegli, who covered the final 20 yards on three carries. Caturegli followed blocker Hudson Kensic, who cleared a path to the end zone for the score. Caturegli added a 2-point run for an 11-7 Mustangs lead with 2:39 left in the first quarter.
The Mustangs defense, anchored by Rice University commit Rob Rooks, junior Ruben Barrera and Novato’s Chelew, held Highland in check and St. Vincent took over with solid field position. Casanovas capped a 60-yard drive with a 27-yard pass to senior Tye Nickens, who out-jumped a pair of Highland defenders in the end zone for a touchdown and a 18-7 lead 11 seconds before halftime.
After forcing Highland to punt in the third quarter, Caturegli ran 52 yards from scrimmage with Chelew as his bodyguard deep into Bulldogs territory. Casanovas, on second and goal, rolled out for a 5-yard touchdown pass to Caturegli for a 25-7 lead with 5:14 left in the third quarter.
St. Vincent’s defense has been a force all season, as Highland found out. The Bulldogs were knocking on the door with 6 minutes left in the fourth quarter, but the Mustangs unit of Caturegli, Rooks and Barrera stuffed the Bulldogs short of the goal line, where they took over on downs.
The Mustangs seemed to have the game sewn up, but Highland put up a pair of big scoring plays late in the fourth quarter. Quarterback JJ Wyatt and senior receiver Demond Blanchard hooked up for a 64-yard touchdown to start the game. The duo connected for touchdown passes of 34 and 45 yards in game’s final minutes. The Mustangs didn’t give the Bulldogs a chance to steal the ball after that, as they watched the seconds tick down until their championship celebration.