A year ago, the Gervais football team turned the corner by recording its first playoff win since 1951.
Friday, the Cougars took another step, defeating Stanfield 18-6 in a 2A quarterfinal at Woodburn High School to earn their first trip to the semifinals since 1951, when they reached the B state championship game.
After missing out on winning the first league title in school history with a 22-16 loss at Colton in the Special District 2 finale, sixth-seeded Gervais has bounced back with playoff wins over reigning state champion Lowell and Stanfield. The Cougars (9-1), who have never won a state title, will face No. 2 Oakland (11-0) in a semifinal Saturday.
“I've always wanted this to happen,” junior lineman Brandon Guido said. “I wanted us to get league champs, we couldn't do that, so we're going for something bigger with a state championship.”
Just three years ago, Gervais finished 0-9.
“This started five years ago when I took over as head coach,” Cougars coach JJ Navarrete said. “I brought in a coaching staff, and we've had consistency, the same five guys preaching the same exact thing. We set a foundation five years ago.”
Friday's win over No. 14 Stanfield (6-5) was a defensive struggle. The game was tied 6-6 in the third quarter when sophomore quarterback Frank Ojeda threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to junior running back Ben Cam to make it 12-6. Cam ran for a 35-yard score to push the lead to 18-6 with 3:01 left in the game, and the Cougars sealed it on a strip-sack by junior Alex Kuznetsov.
The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Cam scored all three touchdowns for the Cougars, giving them a 6-0 lead in the second quarter with a 21-yard scoring catch from Ojeda. Cam had six carries for 68 yards and junior Johnny Mariano had 14 carries for 109 yards.
Cam said opening the two-score lead in the fourth quarter “gave us so much relief” considering how the defense was shutting down Stanfield.
“When we got that, we already knew that we won,” Cam said. “We were nice and chill. Like our coach always says, 'Defense wins games, and then there's offense.'”
Gervais has leaned on its defense this season, recording five shutouts and holding opponents to a 2A-low 76 points. In Friday's game Kuznetsov had two sacks and junior Nikita Burkoff had a key interception of Stanfield senior quarterback Mike Odell, who finished 3 of 11 for 67 yards.
Stanfield got the bulk of its 238 total yards on the ground as senior Jesus Arellano rushed for 142 yards and one touchdown on 39 carries. The Tigers lost junior running back Israel Monkus to an injury early in the game.
Guido said the Cougars are carrying the lessons they learned from the loss to Colton.
“We look at that game almost every day,” Guido said. “The coaches really rely on it. They say stuff like how we lost and how we shouldn't have lost. They want us to have more confidence. They like to bring it up so we can have more motivation to keep going."
Gervais, which lost three fumbles to Stanfield, has to play cleaner to have a chance against Oakland. The Cougars lost to the Oakers 32-18 in the quarterfinals last year after leading 12-0.
“If we don't fix the little mistakes, we're not going to win,” Cam said. “We have to stay disciplined to get where we want to go."
Regardless of the outcome in the semifinals, the future looks bright for Gervais. Of their 18 starting positions, only two are held by seniors.
-- Jeremy McDonald contributed to this report
South Medford marches on
At No. 12 in the final OSAA 6A power rankings, South Medford got bumped from the 12-team Open bracket to make room for Portland Interscholastic League champion Wells, which finished No. 13.
But two rounds later, with South Medford (7-4) in the semifinals of the 6A Championship bracket, the Panthers have no complaints.
“Actually, they did us a favor,” South Medford coach Bill Singler said.
Wells' season ended with a 38-14 first-round loss to Central Catholic. South Medford, the highest-seeded team in the secondary bracket, has advanced with two home wins, beating Jefferson 41-0 in the first round and Sandy 41-21 in the quarterfinals Friday.
South Medford – which made the final of the secondary bracket last year, when it was called the Columbia Cup – has embraced the opportunity to play extra football. And after making four long trips to Salem and one to Portland this season, playing at home has been an added bonus.
“It's our second go-round in this bracket, and you know what, we're enjoying it again,” Singler said. “It gives our kids a chance to play against teams that are more like us. We're taking advantage of it, getting a lot of younger kids more practice time, some game time. We're happy about where we're at.”
South Medford rolled over Sandy as senior Bridger Foss ran for two touchdowns and caught two scoring passes from junior Makana Brown. The Panthers will play No. 16 Newberg (6-5) in a semifinal Friday at Roseburg.
“We get to extend our season,” Singler said. “The chances are minimal we could go on the road as a 12-seed and play a 5-seed and do damage. That's a really, really long shot. Sure, we would take that opportunity, but we're certainly not disappointed where everything fell into place.”
It's possible South Medford will face Black & Blue rival North Medford in the bracket final. No. 14 North Medford (7-4) meets No. 15 Jesuit (9-2) in a semifinal Friday at Willamette High School.
The Panthers defeated the Black Tornado 33-30 on Nov. 1 in a game that Singler called his team's best performance this season.
“It would be great for the fans,” Singler said of a potential rematch. “I'm sure North would want another shot at us.”
North Valley stuns No. 1
Ninth-seeded North Valley (9-2) produced probably the most surprising result of the weekend, going on the road for a 55-22 win at No. 1 Siuslaw/Mapleton (9-1) in a 3A quarterfinal.
It was a dramatic flip from the teams' first meeting Sept. 13, when Siuslaw beat the host Knights 14-7 on a last-minute touchdown pass. In that game, North Valley was undone by five turnovers and more than 100 yards of penalties.
“The more we watched that game through the week, we were like, 'Gosh, we battled ourselves every bit as much as we battled Siuslaw,'” North Valley coach Neil DeForrest said. “Physically, we knew that we were fine. We just happened to play one of our sloppiest games.”
On Friday, the Knights not only took care of the ball, but they ran all over the Vikings with their wing-T offense, racking up 350 rushing yards. Senior Shelby Boughner rushed for 127 yards on 15 carries and junior Hayden Taylor (11 carries, 112 yards) and senior John Erkeneff (15 carries, 75 yards) ran for two touchdowns each.
North Valley also burned Siuslaw with play-action passes as senior Carson Smith caught three passes for 127 yards from junior Roy McGregor, including touchdowns of 61 and 40 yards.
“Fifty-five points, no, I never would have guessed that,” DeForrest said. “The physicality we played with, and the confidence, it was pretty impressive. From the first matchup, we knew we were able to move the ball on them.”
The Knights, who won their only title in 1984, will appear in the semifinals for the first time since 1986. They will play No. 4 Vale (11-0) on Saturday at Summit High School in Bend.
“It's just going to be a matter of matching their physicality and not letting them wear us down,” DeForrest said. “We're not huge. We're not going to be able to match up with them size-wise at all.”
The North Valley community has rallied around the team. As the team departed for its two road playoff games, the fire department escorted the team bus out of town.
“It does mean a lot to this community,” “DeForrest said. “We've had a lot of people reaching out throughout the course of the year, more so as we're on this run.”
Vaughn delivers
Through nine games, the mind-bending numbers that North Douglas junior running back Hunter Vaughn had accumulated came mostly in the first half of blowout wins.
On Saturday, though, the third-seeded Warriors (10-0) needed everything they could get from Vaughn in a tight 1A-8 quarterfinal against No. 6 Dufur (9-2), and he delivered in a big way.
Trailing 36-34, the 6-1, 175-pound Vaughn ran for a 32-yard touchdown on a fake reverse with 51 seconds left to lift North Douglas to a 42-36 win at Sutherlin High School. Senior Jayden Montgomery's interception sealed the win for the Warriors, who are chasing after the first state championship in school history.
“I think I should have the ball in that situation,” Vaughn told the Roseburg News-Review. “I’m confident in myself — not saying I’m not confident in my teammates — but I knew I could get it done and I did. That fake reverse got them and I was wide open, and luckily no penalties.”
Vaughn had 30 carries for 253 yards and five touchdowns, giving him 2,367 yards and 41 rushing scores for the season. He also had two catches for 54 yards and intercepted a pass.
“We came into it knowing it was going to be a dogfight,” Vaughn told the News-Review. “To be honest, I didn’t expect them to be as explosive as they were. Dufur definitely caught us off guard. We started to run out of gas in the fourth quarter, but pulled something out and made it happen.”
North Douglas advances to play No. 2 Crosspoint Christian (9-1) in the semifinals. The only other times North Douglas made the final four were in 1972 and 2016, both losses. In 1952, when the school was known as Drain, the team finished as the B runner-up.
Highlights from other quarterfinals:
6A Open
Reigning state champion Central Catholic moved on with a 40-17 win at Lakeridge. Tyson Davis returned after missing the first round with a shoulder injury and rushed for 157 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries. Lakeridge's Drew Weiler completed 22 of 28 passes for 239 yards and one touchdown with one interception and ran for a 16-yard score. … No. 1 Lake Oswego eliminated No. 8 Mountainside 35-0 as LaMarcus Bell ran for 194 yards and three touchdowns, including a 56-yarder in the first quarter. Hudson Kurland threw a 58-yard touchdown pass to Liam Davis on a flea-flicker. … Sheldon routed Special District 1 rival Sprague for the second time in three weeks, rolling 45-17. Mana Tuioti rushed for 113 yards and five touchdowns on 10 carries for the Irish. Sheldon had a bye after thumping Sprague 52-7 for the district title Nov. 1. … Viggo Anderson rushed for 172 yards and four touchdowns on 12 carries to spark West Linn past Sherwood 49-14. Baird Gilroy completed 9 fo 12 passes for 191 yards and two touchdowns, one to Danny Wideman (three catches, 95 yards). Sherwood's Wilson Medina had seven carries for 114 yards and one touchdown.
6A Championship
Ethan Hein ran for a three-yard touchdown with 52 seconds left to give Newberg a 36-33 home win over Grants Pass. The score was set up by a Cole Thomas interception and 62-yard return. Chace Macken rushed for 110 yards for the Tigers, who have gone 6-1 since an 0-4 start. … Jesuit rallied from a 20-7 deficit to beat West Salem 21-20, getting an 87-yard touchdown pass from Trey Cleeland to Jack Tuenge with 4:17 left to take the lead. The play came after Jesuit blocked a 23-yard field goal attempt. Cleeland completed 13 of 22 passes for 249 yards and three touchdowns, two Grant Valley (eight catches, 117 yards). West Salem's Koen Campos rushed for 149 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. … Cameron Nix ran for the go-ahead touchdown in North Medford's 15-8 win over Tigard. Easton Curtis, who caught a touchdown pass from Traeger Healy for North Medford's first score, clinched the win with an interception.
5A
Silverton built a 36-0 lead in the third quarter and knocked out Summit 36-23. Sawyer Teeney completed 18 of 22 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns, two to Logan Uitto, and ran for two scores. … Roman Kealoha rushed for 180 yards and three touchdowns in Wilsonville's 34-6 win over Churchill. Mark Wiepert completed 14 of 27 passes for 185 yards and ran for two touchdowns for the Wildcats. … West Albany won at Mid-Willamette Conference rival Dallas 23-13 as Tyler Hart-McNally ran for two touchdowns. … Mountain View vanquished Lebanon 41-10, benefiting from four turnovers. Angel Valenzuela rushed for 94 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries and Ryder Carpenter ran for two scores.
4A
Marist Catholic blanked Oregon West Conference foe Stayton for the second time this season, rolling 45-0. Nick Hudson completed 14 of 22 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Connor Harvey rushed for 82 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries and caught a 59-yard scoring pass. … Scappoose drilled Tillamook 41-0 as Max Nowlin completed 20 of 27 passes for 317 yards and six touchdowns, three to Quinton Olson. … Quarterback Joe Janney ran for a 10-yard touchdown with 13 seconds left to give Henley a 21-14 win over Philomath. Janney rushed for 97 yards on 16 carries and threw two touchdown passes to Mark Carpenter. … Cascade powered past Pendleton 44-26 behind Carter Condon, who rushed for 173 yards and three touchdowns. Pendleton's Colson Primus completed 20 of 27 passes for 243 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions.
3A
Banks came back from a 20-13 deficit in the third quarter to dethrone two-time reigning champion Cascade Christian 27-20 in a rematch of last year's final. Lane Gilbert tied it 20-20 on a one-yard touchdown run with 2:08 left, and scored on a one-yard run with 13 seconds left for the win. Gilbert completed 10 of 15 passes for 221 yards and had 19 carries for 100 yards. Jarrett Martin caught a 72-yard touchdown pass from Gilbert and ran for a nine-yard score. Cascade Christian's Deryk Farmer completed 19 of 28 passes for 236 yards and one touchdown and ran for 112 yards and one score on 27 carries. … Kase Schaffeld rushed for 267 yards and four touchdowns on 38 carries for Vale, which stayed unbeaten with a 46-24 win over Taft. The visiting Tigers were within 30-24 in the third quarter. … No. 11 Burns went on the road to subdue No. 3 Santiam Christian 25-3. Jack Wright passed for two touchdowns for the Hilanders, who have held opponents to single-digit points in eight of 11 games.
2A
Heppner trailed 6-0 at half before overtaking Lost River 16-12. The Raiders outgained Heppner 263-172 but came up short, failing to convert their two-point tries. Heppner's touchdowns came on an 18-yard pass from Mason Orem to Alakae Rodriguez and a six-yard run by Zach Brown. … St. Paul led 43-0 at half and coasted past Culver 43-8 in a battle of unbeaten teams. The Buckaroos had a 450-141 edge in yards, rushing for 351 yards, led by Clay Smith (11 carries, 177 yards, three touchdowns) and Diego Medina (seven carries, 142 yards, two touchdowns). Grady Wolf threw two touchdown passes. … Oakland earned a spot in the final four for the third year in a row by dispatching Myrtle Point 29-14. Gabe Williamson rushed for 228 yards and four touchdowns on 36 carries. The game was tied 8-8 after three quarters, but the Oakers scored three touchdowns in the final 4:42.
1A-8
Adrian blitzed Cove 50-12, opening a 28-0 lead in the first quarter. Colten Bayes and Kash Morford each ran for two touchdowns and Trey Bayes passed for two scores. Morford returned a fumble for a touchdown after a strip-sack by Braysen Jordan. Rance Jordan rushed for 102 yards on six carries. … Milen Bowen ran for two touchdowns and Josh Zander returned a fumble for a score for Crane, which handled Union 42-22. … Crosspoint Christian outlasted Sherman/Condon 58-40 as Kody Sparks completed 9 of 12 passes for 153 yards and three touchdowns – all to Treyton Johnston – and ran for a score. Junior Gonzalez rushed for 153 yards and one touchdown.
1A-6
Powers took out Joseph 54-33 as Patrick Mahmoud passed for two touchdowns and had two interceptions on defense, returning one for a score. Braden Bushnell threw two touchdown passes and Jayce Shorb ran for two scores. … Prairie City/Burnt River piled up 478 yards in defeating Eddyville Charter 54-0. Sawyer Quinton rushed for 287 yards and four touchdowns on 11 carries and Maison Teel had eight carries for 181 yards and three scores, giving him 2,013 yards and 37 rushing touchdowns for the season. Prairie City forced five turnovers, getting three interceptions from Carter Watterson and an interception and fumble recovery from Teel. … Harper Charter ran away from reigning state champion Echo 59-8. Cope Christensen rushed for 190 yards and four touchdowns on 17 carries and Maddox Martinez rushed for two scores. Richard Joyce completed 5 of 6 passes for 106 yards and three touchdowns. … South Wasco County outlasted North Lake 52-45. Storm McCoy completed 18 of 25 passes for 316 yards and seven touchdowns, five to Gavin Hagan (seven catches, 146 yards) and two to George Barnett (seven catches, 118 yards). North Lake, which trailed by 20 points in the second half, scored a touchdown with 21 seconds left for the final margin.
jerryu@osaa.org
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