As the son of Half Moon Bay head coach Keith Holden, Cougars sophomore quarterback Paxton Holden has been around the Skull Game rivalry his entire life.
It didn’t take long for him to make his mark when he experienced it as a player for the first time Thursday night.
On Half Moon Bay’s second play from scrimmage, Holden took off to his left on what looked like a designed quarterback run, then pitched the ball out to Luke Pimentel, who took it the remaining 45 yards for a touchdown. It was the first of many explosive plays for the Cougars’ offense, which never took its foot off the gas in a 59-28 romp over Terra Nova in Pacifica.
Half Moon Bay retained possession of The Skull for the third year in a row and has now won eight of the last 10 meetings with the Tigers. Holden may not have kept the ball on that first touchdown, but he did plenty of damage with it in his hands, rushing for 284 yards and three scores. He also passed for 107 yards and a touchdown on just three completions.
“It’s super exciting. I’ve been looking forward to this forever,” Paxton Holden said. “You get one shot at it, and we made the most of it.”
Terra Nova made plenty of noise offensively as well but just could not slow down the Cougars’ trademark scrum offense. Half Moon Bay scored on every possession except for a turnover deep in Tigers territory near the end of each half.
Joey Donati led the way for Terra Nova, accounting for all four Tigers touchdowns. He completed 17 of 23 passes for 278 yards and three scores, adding 50 rushing yards and a touchdown on 12 carries.
“He’s a pure leader,” Terra Nova head coach Nick Lotti said of his three-year starting quarterback. “He was never a pure quarterback, but he’s learned to play the game there and he’s learned to control it. Wherever he decides to go to college, that school is going to be lucky to get him.”
Both teams finished the regular season with 7-3 records, with the Tigers winning the PAL-El Camino Division and the Cougars finishing second in the Ocean Division. Terra Nova will be the No. 3 seed in Division V of the Central Coast Section playoffs and will host South San Francisco in the quarterfinals on Friday night. Half Moon Bay is the No. 5 seed in Division IV and travels to Burlingame for Friday night’s first-round matchup.
In both cases, the playoff games will be rematches of hard-fought regular-season games at the same venue. The Tigers edged the Warriors 14-9 on October 10 to win the El Camino Division, while the Cougars outlasted the Panthers 35-32 in overtime back in Week 1.
“This will be the first week in awhile (where) we get a full week. We’ve played three Thursdays in a row, so it will be nice to get a full week of practice,” Keith Holden said. “We don’t have to limit things. Our call sheet can get a little longer and we can add a couple more things in.”
King City beats Stevenson for first league title since 1983
It was a historic Thursday night for the CCS’ southernmost team as the Mustangs earned a 42-28 win at home over No. 18 Stevenson, taking the PCAL-Mission South title.
Carson Tidwell led King City (9-1, 5-0) with 208 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries, making life comfortable for quarterback Rocky Vasquez, who was 12-of-14 passing for 175 yards and three touchdowns of his own. That was enough to overcome Pirates quarterback Fin Mink, who completed 29 of 39 passes for 338 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.
The Mustangs are the No. 5 seed in the CCS Division III bracket and will visit Live Oak on Friday night. Stevenson (9-1, 4-1) is one spot behind King City as the No. 6 seed and is at Menlo-Atherton in Friday night’s quarterfinal round.
Willow Glen claims division championship with win over Sobrato
In another winner-take-all game, this one for the BVAL-Santa Teresa Valley Division, the No. 22 Rams used a big third quarter to beat the Bulldogs 23-18 on Friday night.
All three of Sobrato’s touchdowns came on explosive plays. Brayden Hughes connected with Jacob Sorrentino on pass plays of 92 and 88 yards, and Brady Lennon broke free on a 63-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter. But Willow Glen (8-2, 5-0) took the lead for good on a big play of its own. Steven Young found Gavin Ferraro on a 64-yard touchdown pass, and the Rams also got short rushing touchdowns from Joey Sweeney and Lucas Favela.
Willow Glen was 2-for-2 on two-point conversion attempts, while the Bulldogs (6-4, 4-1) missed on both of theirs as well as an extra point. Those post-touchdown plays were the difference in the game.
The Rams head into the playoffs as the No. 2 seed in Division IV, hosting San Lorenzo Valley in the first round. Sobrato is the No. 2 seed in Division V and has a home quarterfinal Saturday against Santa Cruz.
WCAL roundup: Riordan wins first title in 25 years, SI earns Bruce-Mahoney upset
No. 1 Riordan, behind its explosive offense and spectacular senior class, completed a perfect regular season with a 42-35 win Friday night at No. 2 Serra, earning its first West Catholic Athletic League championship since 2000.
Vanderbilt commit Michael Mitchell Jr. was 12-of-19 passing for 222 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, tacking on 100 rushing yards on 12 carries. Junior running back Adonyae Brown stole the show after missing his previous two games with an injury, with 21 carries for 193 yards and three touchdowns as well as a 40-yard touchdown reception.
The Crusaders (10-0, 7-0 WCAL) overcame an early 14-point deficit as their offense found life in the second half before a huge crowd in San Mateo. They will be the top seed in the Open/Division I bracket and host Salinas on Saturday.
The Padres (6-4, 6-1) are the No. 2 seed and host Mitty at the same time. If Serra beats the Monarchs, as it did in a 28-13 victory on October 24, the Padres will likely see Riordan again in the Open Division championship game.
St. Ignatius, meanwhile, earned its third straight win over rival Sacred Heart Cathedral in the Bruce-Mahoney game. The Wildcats built a 17-point halftime lead and held on for a 23-14 win at Kezar Stadium as Zui Shelton had 102 receiving yards and a touchdown on just three catches.
The victory vaulted SI (4-6, 3-4 WCAL) above the Fightin’ Irish in the CCS Division II seedings. The top-seeded Wildcats host Alisal on Friday night, while No. 2 seed SHC (4-6, 2-5) hosts Wilcox at City College of San Francisco on Saturday.
