WATSONVILLE — Five hard-working, devoted and talented girls flag football teams from Santa Cruz County made history when their players and coaches stepped onto the field for their respective games in the sports’ inaugural Central Coast Section playoffs on Monday.
Their postseason stays were brief — the county was unsuccessful in producing a winner among the bunch — but memories of what was accomplished this season will not be forgotten anytime soon.
Fifty-three years after the CCS hosted its first football playoffs, the girls finally got their opportunity to compete in their version of the beloved sport.
For the locals, it was a glorious entrance, and a heartbreaking exit.
Pajaro Valley High senior Daisy Rincon flies for more yardage during a gain against visiting Notre Dame of San Jose in the first round of the inaugural CCS Division II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
In Watsonville, several players for No. 8 seed Pajaro Valley left the field in tears after suffering a 20-8 loss to No. 1 Notre Dame of San Jose in the Division II quarterfinals.
They’d worked too hard to endure such a result in front of their hometown fans, including several who toted signs, professing their support for their loved ones.
“It was a lot of fun,” said Grizzlies’ two-way talent Perla Rivera, of her team’s successful season. “It’s not just a team, it’s a community. It’s a family.”
There were also in-game tears, nerves, smiles, and joy — and, eventually, photographs. The players’ emotions ran the gamut as they battled to stretch their postseason stay two more days to the semifinals.
“We are a pretty young team,” said Cesar Rojas, noting that he graduates just three seniors. “What I was telling the girls, we came in, we were nervous. We showed it and they took advantage of it, but we’re gonna get that experience. Next year, we’re coming back and we’re coming back stronger.”
Notre Dame (16-4 overall) the runner-up to San Jose’s Presentation in the West Bay Athletic League’s Skyline Division, plays at No. 4 Burlingame (11-7) in Wednesday’s semifinals at 7 p.m.
“It was so important for us because we’re creating a legacy for Notre Dame-San Jose,” said U’ilani Wells, a sophomore receiver/defensive back. “Some of these girls are from the first flag football team for Notre Dame, and we made history playing here today in the first CCS playoff game. I’m just so proud of our team and so grateful for this opportunity.”
Pajaro Valley High sophomore Leilani English gets past Notre Dame of San Jose defender Catherine Cofre for a gain in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
After the Regents secured victory, they sprinted to their sideline to a box of souvenir T-shirts, commemorating the historic CCS tournament, to stake claim. Smalls and mediums were in high demand.
Two of the Regents’ taller players, 5-foot-7 junior quarterback Jazmyn Mina and 5-6 Wells, took their time. They knew they’d be left with something that fit.
“We worked hard, both teams, worked hard to get here,” Mina said. “I think its so important for our team that we’re making history. It wasn’t just one person, it was us as a collective. Thank you to our team, the coaches, U’ilani had a great game, all of our defense. Everyone contributed.”
As historic as the tournament is, there are still some things that can be improved.
Seedings for the 32 qualifiers spread across four, eight-team divisions raised some eyebrows. Clearly, it wasn’t an easy undertaking, especially with no history to go off, and with such drastic disparity between the number of contests teams played over the course of the regular season, which ranged from 10 games to 26.
And, if you asked Notre Dame fans, not all of the the venues were perfect either. The Regents, who don’t have a field on the campus of their all-girls, inner-city school, were forced to come over the hill from Silicon Valley for their “home” game, despite owning the higher seed. (The Regents were unable to secure another home field in San Jose, and the CCS rejected the Regents’ suggestion of hosting the game at a nearby park.)
Pajaro Valley High’s Nadia Renteria keeps up the defensive pressure as she chases down Notre Dame of San Jose’s Gabby Gianella in the first round of the CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley loved the site change, but not the end result.
“It was incredible to have our parents out here, our students and staff supporting us,” Rojas said. “And I told the girls, ‘We own it to them. And we own it to ourselves. We’re young, we’ll be fine.”
Like the majority of football fields throughout the CCS, flag football wasn’t around when the host Grizzlies’ had their synthetic surface field installed. That meant dozens of cones were used to designate the sidelines for the narrower, 80-yard long flag football field. Several calls were made by officials where a player was ruled out of bounds. Fans from both teams let them know that they didn’t often agree.
Notre Dame jumped out to 13-0 lead by halftime on a pair of touchdown passes from Mina. The cannon-armed slinger — a catcher and outfielder on the softball diamond — connected with senior receiver Gabby Gianella for a 21-yard score in the first quarter, and with Wells for a 10-yard score in suffocating double coverage in the second quarter.
The Regents’ ability to gain big chunks of yards through the air flustered the aggressive, defensive-minded Grizzlies, who recorded a whopping 10 shutouts during the season.
Pajaro Valley High quarterback Aaliyah Suarez throws downfield against Notre Dame of San Jose during the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Still, sophomore Nadia Renteria and Rivera shined on defense for the Grizzlies, making multiple stops at the line of scrimmage and for a loss of yards.
Pajaro Valley’s biggest celebration came in the third quarter. Rivera, who also plays receiver, made a leaping catch on a pass from sophomore quarterback Aaliyah Suarez in tight coverage over the middle and legged out the remainder of her 30-yard touchdown reception.
Renteria hauled in a two-point conversion pass from Suarez to narrow the Grizzlies’ deficit to 13-8.
While the Grizzlies’ defense tightened, their offense committed too many turnovers to overtake the Regents.
“We really tried,” Rivera said. “We were looking for the gaps, but it was hard.”
Wells, who also plays defensive back, made four interceptions for the Regents, including three in the second half. Her second pick set up Mina’s 6-yard touchdown pass to Gianella.
Isela Trujillo hauled in the conversion pass from Mina for the final score with 1:28 remaining in the third quarter.
Wells’ final pick came with 5:50 remaining. The Regents ran nine straight run plays to kill the remainder of the game clock. Mina took a knee on the final three plays.
Both teams’ punters, Pajaro Valley’s Analila Vazquez and Notre Dame’s Marissa Barba, did an exceptional job of making their opponent work with a long field.
As tough as the loss was for Pajaro Valley to swallow, the Grizzlies (15-3) still had a banner season. They went 14-2 to in the Pacific Coast Athletic League’s Mission Division to secure their first title in school history. Their feat will be immortalized on a wall in the school’s gymnasium.
“We had a good season and I feel like we gave it all we could,” Renteria said. “I’m just grateful we left with something. We got a banner.”
St. Francis High freshman Eden Findrick runs against visiting Menlo-Atherton in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday. (Angie Hernandez – Special to the Sentinel)
St. Francis High sophomore Evonna Jordan runs against visiting Menlo-Atherton in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday. (Angie Hernandez – Special to the Sentinel)
St. Francis High sophomore quarterback Liliana Whitmeyer passes against visiting Menlo-Atherton in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday. (Angie Hernandez – Special to the Sentinel)
St. Francis High sophomore Keira Grio scores against visiting Menlo-Atherton in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday. (Angie Hernandez – Special to the Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High quarterback Aaliyah Suarez throws downfield against Notre Dame of San Jose during the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High’s Perla Rivera runs for a touchdown in the first half as teammate Xitlali Pozos (2) cheers her on during the first round of the inaugural Central Coast Section Division II flag football playoffs against Notre Dame of San Jose on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High senior Daisy Rincon flies for more yardage during a gain against visiting Notre Dame of San Jose in the first round of the inaugural CCS Division II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High senior Daisy Rincon gains yardage against Notre Dame of San Jose in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High’s Denise Magallon slices through Notre Dame of San Jose’s defense in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High’s Aaliyah Suarez gains yardage during a quarterback keeper against Notre Dame of San Jose in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High sophomore Leilani English gets past Notre Dame of San Jose defender Catherine Cofre for a gain in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High’s Perla Rivera grabs a flag to stop Notre Dame of San Jose’s Marissa Barba in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High’s Nadia Renteria keeps up the defensive pressure as she chases down Notre Dame of San Jose’s Gabby Gianella in the first round of the CCS D-II playoffs on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
Pajaro Valley High’s Denise Magallon grabs Marissa Barba’s flag for a tackle on Monday. (Shmuel Thaler – Santa Cruz Sentinel)
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St. Francis High freshman Eden Findrick runs against visiting Menlo-Atherton in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday. (Angie Hernandez – Special to the Sentinel)
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Menlo-Atherton 25, St. Francis 19
WATSONVILLE — Freshman Eden Findrick scored twice for the No. 4 Sharks in their loss to the No. 5 Bears in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday.
Findrick’s second touchdown, on a slant route from 12 yards out in the fourth quarter, put St. Francis ahead 19-18 with 3 minutes remaining.
St. Francis High sophomore Evonna Jordan runs against visiting Menlo-Atherton in the first round of the inaugural CCS Open Division playoffs on Monday. (Angie Hernandez – Special to the Sentinel)
Bears quarterback Mae Kunihiro rushed for the game-winning touchdown with 1:55 remaining.
St. Francis turned the ball over on downs on its final possession.
Sharks sophomore receiver Keira Grio also scored a TD, from 20 yards out.
Findrick finished with 16 touchdowns for the PCAL Gabilan Division champion Sharks (20-6).
“Overall, we played well, but had some costly mistakes on offense and defense that ultimately cost us the game, ” Sharks coach Frank Galvan said. “Menlo is a great team and came to play.”
Menlo-Atherton (13-2), the unbeaten champion of the Peninsula Athletic League’s Bay Division, plays at No. 1 Menlo (14-2) in Wednesday’s semifinals at 3 p.m.
Andrew Hill 14, Aptos 7
APTOS — The No. 3 Mariners threw a pick-six on the first play and were upset by the No. 6 Falcons in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-II playoffs on Monday.
Ellie Marta scored on a 17-yard pass from Ella Porter late in the first half, and Porter ran the ball conversion, which left the teams tied at 7-all at the half.
Hill receiver Quetzali Alvarez scored in the decisive TD on a pass from Annaliyah Felix late in the fourth quarter.
The loss snapped a five-game win streak for the Mariners (12-6-1), the three-time Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League champions.
“This loss doesn’t diminish what these players accomplished in league this year, nor the fact that we participated in the inaugural CCS games,” Mariners coach Denise Russo said. “We had a few too many mistakes on both sides of the ball, but we were in it until the end, never giving up. With the chemistry of this young team we are looking forward to our season next year.”
The Falcons (11-5), the third-place finisher in the Blossom Valley Athletic League’s Mount Hamilton Division, play at No. 2 San Mateo (10-4) in Wednesday’s semifinals at 7 p.m.
Carmel 47, Soquel 7
CARMEL — Junior receiver Charlotte Ryan scored for the No. 7 Knights in their loss to the No. 2 Padres in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-III playoffs on Monday.
Ryan hauled in a 10-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Katie Niizawa in the fourth quarter.
Phil Hadreas, head coach of the SCCAL co-runner-up Knights, said Carmel found success with its short passing game.
“It was death by a thousand paper cuts and we didn’t have any answers for them,” Hadreas said.
Hadreas said the postseason experience was a valuable learning experience for the Knights.
Carmel (12-5), the co-runner-up to St. Francis in the PCAL Gabilan Division, hosts No. 3 Priory (9-4) of Portola Valley in Wednesday’s semifinals at 3 p.m.
Presentation 35, Scotts Valley 6
SAN JOSE — The No. 8 Falcons trailed 7-0 at the half in their loss lost to the No. 1 Panthers in the first round of the inaugural CCS D-III playoffs on Monday.
In the second half? “Different story,” said Falcons coach Louie Walters, noting that his team threw four interceptions.
“They took advantage and scored on those turnovers,” Walters said. “Presentation was a solid team; we knew that going in.”
Presley Pastrell scored on a 20-yard pass from quarterback Jazzy Phillips in the third quarter.
It was the third loss in the past four games for the SCCAL co-runner-up Falcons (6-5).
Presentation (19-5), the undefeated champion of the WBAL’s Skyline Division, hosts No. 5 Castilleja (19-8) of Palo Alto in Wednesday’s semifinals at 3 p.m.
THE SCORES
CCS quarterfinals
Open Division: Menlo-Atherton 25, St. Francis 19
D-II: Andrew Hill 14, Aptos 7
D-II: Notre Dame-San Jose 20, Pajaro Valley 8
D-III: Carmel 47, Soquel 7
D-III: Presentation 35, Scotts Valley 6