SAN RAMON, CA - Despite a rocky start, the No. 3-seeded California Grizzlies managed to come out on top 37-12 over 14-seed Dougherty Valley.
Fumbles from Simi Hingano and Blake Bierwith on its first two possessions could have cost Cal a lot, but Dougherty Valley never capitalized on those turnovers, and gave Cal extra opportunities to run away.
“We knew we were moving the ball on them,” said senior quarterback Matt Lorenz. “Just a couple of stupid mistakes to fix and we fixed it and we got the ball in the end zone.”
Running back Blake Bierwith accounted for 117 rushing yards and one touchdown on 18 carries - all in the first half - and also had a 66-yard receiving touchdown from quarterback Matt Lorenz to give them a 13-0 lead after a failed extra point with 5:23 remaining in the first half.
“We had to give it to our starting tailback,” said Cal head coach Eric Bellici. “Blake Bierwith took care of that for us.”
Lorenz has made up for the absence of starting quarterback Cameron Owen, who is out with a hip injury. He completed 4-of-6 throws for 157 yards and two touchdowns, with 137 of those yards coming before halftime.
“I’ve been working hard all year," Lorenz said. "I’ve got a lot of help from the offensive line and my running backs and it’s been pretty easy."
Dougherty Valley was in striking distance multiple times, but got stopped on the goal line on its second possession as it went for it on fourth down. This led to five-play scoring drive for Cal, capping it off on a 17-yard touchdown run from Blake Bierwith to give Cal a 7-0 lead.
For the second time in school history, the Wildcats made it to the NCS playoffs. Coming off an 0-10 season, there wasn’t much hope, but they delivered this year as they qualified for the second time in the school’s seventh year of existence.
They got a strong performance from running back Afolabi Adeoti, who ran for 119 yards on 21 carries, and made up well for the absence of Michael Pangelinan.
The touchdowns for Dougherty Valley came on a 9-yard touchdown run from Adeoti to cut the Cal lead to 19-6 with under a minute left in the first half, and on an 11-yard touchdown run form Lanrae Adelekan.
After Adeoti’s touchdown, however, Cal came right back with a score of its own. On its first play of the drive, quarterback Matt Lorenz connected with junior Ryan Groleau for a 71-yard touchdown to send the Grizzlies to the locker room with a 27-6 lead at the half.
Groleau finished with two catches for 75 yards, with his night highlighted on that long touchdown reception.
Next week, Cal faces the winner of San Ramon Valley vs. San Leandro, in the quarterfinals. Grizzly players and coaches believe there is room for improvement going into next week’s contest.
“Getting off to a faster start,” said Billeci.
Both San Ramon Valley and San Leandro are no easy tasks. Cal did defeat San Ramon Valley 35-21 in the regular season, but has not faced San Leandro. The victory tonight helped bring back confidence to the squad after falling to De La Salle 55-0 last week.
“We’re happy and we’re going to look at film tomorrow and see who we face next round,” said Lorenz.
