Late touchdown lifts Sierra past Chowchilla in state title game

The standing-room only crowd on the Chowchilla High side of Henry Massaro Stadium was going bananas.

The Redskins faithful could feel a state championship within reach after Chowchilla’s Alex Gutierrez scored a touchdown and then ran in a two-point conversion to give the Redskins a one-point lead with just 2 minutes and 28 seconds left in the game.

Meanwhile, Sierra quarterback Mark Vicente was doing his best to remain calm on the Timberwolves’ sideline.

Vicente orchestrated a drive that will go down in Sierra history, as he led the Timberwovles 81 yards on 10 plays, finding running back Mark Paule Jr. open for a nine-yard touchdown pass to give Sierra the 20-15 victory and the CIF State Division IV-A State Championship.

“We had all the faith in the world in Mark and our offense and receivers,” said Sierra coach Jeff Harbison. “He did a great job. He has a never-say-never attitude. He’s a playmaker and he got it done.”

Vicente came up with the big plays with the game on the line, including a 24-yard pass on fourth-and-10 to get the drive going.

Vicente kept plays alive by avoiding rushers and finding receivers downfield. He hooked up with Jimmy Galindo for 24 yards on a third-down pass to move the ball to the Chowchilla 30-yard line. He then scrambled for 21 yards to advance the ball to the 9-yard line.

Two plays, later he found Paule for the game-winning touchdown.

“I had to stay calm,” said Vicente, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns. “At times I got panicky, but I had to do it for the team. They were bringing an extra blitzer, and I was able to get out of it and find open receivers.”

Chowchilla got the ball back at its own 37-yard line with 50 seconds left, but were without starting quarterback Ryan Selby, who left the game with a possible concussion.

Backup quarterback Giovanni Ruacho found Gutierrez open for a 24-yard pass to move the ball into Sierra territory, but he slipped on the wet grass on third down and time expired.

“It’s a tough spot, but we try to prepare every day to be ready in a game when their number is called,” said Chowchilla coach Alex Pittz.

Chowchilla (12-3) had to scratch and claw with whatever healthy bodies it could run out on the field. The Redskins’ leading rusher, Anthony Stewart, played sparingly on offense with a bad right shoulder. Danny Chavez did everything he could on offense, rushing for 71 yards, including a three-yard touchdown, despite playing through a separated shoulder, a broken thumb and a swollen knee.

“Danny Chavez is the toughest kid I’ve ever coached,” Pittz said. “He’s a true warrior.”

Both defenses dominated with the help of the wet, muddy conditions. Both teams struggled with snaps and ballhandling.

Vicente gave the Timberwolves (10-5) an early 7-0 lead when he outran the Chowchilla defense for a 65-yard touchdown with 8:08 left in the first quarter.

A bad snap on a punt set up the Chowchilla offense at the Sierra 2-yard line, but the Timberwolves’ defense held the Redskins out of the end zone with Paule intercepting a Selby pass in the end zone on fourth down.

A poor punt after the Sierra offense went three-and-out set up the Redskins at the Timberwovles’ 28.

This time Chowchilla capitalized, as Chavez broke free for a 26-yard run and then scored on a three-yard touchdown the next play to tie the game at 7-7 with 1:03 left in the first half.

The Timberwolves again used the big play to take the lead in the third quarter. On a fourth-and-13, Vicente found receiver Daniel Wyatt open down a seam for a 34-yard touchdown pass to give Sierra a 14-7 lead with 8:48 left in the third quarter.

“Hats off to Chowchilla and their defense,” Harbison said. “Their (defensive coordinator) called a great game. We got a couple bounces to go our way and we ended up on the better end of the scoreboard.”

Both defense dominated until Chowchilla caught a break when Sierra was flagged for a personal foul on a Redskins punt return that set up Chowchilla at the Timberwolves’ 34-yard line.

Despite the injured shoulder, Stewart went in to play quarterback and helped move the ball downfield with two key runs. Gutierrez then went around the left end for an eight-yard touchdown run that pulled Chowchilla with 14-13 with 2:28 left.

“I had already thought about that decision before the game,” Pittz said. “We were going for two.”

On the same play, Gutierrez went around the left end for the two-point conversion as the Chowchilla fans erupted with the Redskins leading 15-14.

“In my head, I thought, ‘we got this,’ ” Gutierrez said. “I figured we’d stop them and then we’d be able to take a knee. I can’t explain this feeling. It’s so intense.”

The Redskins were stunned to see Sierra drive down for the winning touchdown against their defense that had played so well.

“We just worked so hard for this. We should have won,” said Chowchilla linebacker Damon Perry. “We came so close. We worked hard out there, both teams did. We played our hearts out.”

This story was originally published December 19, 2015 at 10:54 PM with the headline "Late touchdown lifts Sierra past Chowchilla in state title game."