Central Catholic makes D4 history

CARSON -- The Central Catholic High gym is so small, the 16 Sac-Joaquin Section football championship banners on display qualifies as wallpaper.

Yes, it's the most honored and most storied program in the section. But until Friday, the Raiders were unable to claim as their own the two words that help define the elite programs in California.

State Champion.

In a game that was decided within minutes of the opening kickoff, the Raiders ran, ran and ran some more to a 66-7 victory over Santa Fe Christian that stands alone as the most one-sided game in state bowl game history.

With the victory came the state Division 4 title, allowing the Raiders to stand alongside once and future small-school rivals Modesto Christian (2009) and Escalon (2010) as state titlists from the Stanislaus District.

"It's great to be a part of history and to do something no one has ever done before, especially with my senior class," said running back Ray Lomas, one-half of the Ray and Rey running backs tandem that helped rewrite the state bowl record book.

In addition to the 59-point win, Central set an all-bowls record for points scored, and can lay claim to Division 4 marks for rushing yards (521) and total yards (577).

And while Lomas ran for 183 yards and three touchdowns, Rey Vega needed only six carries to score four touchdowns and gain a bowl-record 202 yards. The record he broke was the 196 yards gained by Central's Louis Bland in the Raiders' 2007 bowl loss.

All of the above was accomplished despite Santa Fe Christian and Central Catholic agreeing to play the entire second half with a running clock following a 59-7 halftime score.

Yes, in a game pitting two parochial schools, this was a mismatch of Biblical proportion.

"I never thought we'd get 66," said Central Catholic coach Roger Canepa. "We played a tough schedule and we got better and better, and we willed ourselves to get even better every week. If we had a game next week, we'd get even better yet."

In six postseason games Central outscored its opponents 297-83. Its closest game was a section second-round 40-21 win at Ripon in a game it trailed 21-17 at halftime.