San Ramon Valley's Austin Shelton (27) celebrates what proved to be the game-winning field goal in a 19-17 victory over Marin Catholic in the championship game, Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022, in Danville, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
DANVILLE – Down by one point with 18 seconds left and facing fourth and two at the Marin Catholic 20-yard line, San Ramon Valley coach Aaron Becker had a choice to make. Go for it with his offense, or trust his kicker to come through in the rain.
Becker chose to kick, and junior Austin Shelton was more than up to the occasion.
He easily banged in a 37-yard field goal through the pouring rain and gusting wind to beat previously-undefeated Marin Catholic 19-17 in the 2-A NorCal playoff. The junior’s second field goal of the night sent the Wolves to their first state championship game in school history, where they will play Granite Hills.
“This is like what we do in practice, where on Wednesdays we run pressure kick situation drills with the whole team surrounding me,” Shelton said. “This is just routine.”
In a game played during a rainstorm, passing the ball was never going to be a reliable option for either team. San Ramon Valley threw for only 105 yards, while Marin Catholic tossed for just 65.
Each team earned field position through the ground game instead. San Ramon Valley’s John Pau Mendoza ran for 134 yards and one score as the Wolves’ lead running back.
“These are my brothers, and I run hard for them,” said Pau Mendoza, whose touchdown went for 58 yards. “And I want to say that my line was outstanding today.”
Marin Catholic running back Charles Williams rushed for 233 yards and both of Marin Catholic’s touchdowns. There wasn’t anything fancy about how Williams got his yards, which is what made him so difficult to defend. On his 25 carries, only once was Williams stopped for negative yardage.
“He’s real quick and he’s so fast, and he doesn’t tiptoe around the line either,” San Ramon Valley linebacker Marco Jones said. “Once he sees the hole, he hits it hard.”
Wolves quarterback Luke Baker threw his only touchdown of the night to sophomore Owen Scott in the first quarter. The wide receiver then made an even bigger play on special teams in the fourth quarter.
Having already made one kick in the fourth quarter, Marin Catholic’s special teams unit lined up for another short field goal up 17-16 with four minutes left in the game.
Scott tore around the edge and blocked the kick. A teammate recovered and gave the Wolves one more drive.
“I wasn’t supposed to be out there, but I heard my named called and I ran out,” Scott said. “I sprinted around the edge, laid out and blocked it.”
“San Ramon Valley is an incredible team, and they did a great job,” Marin Catholic coach Mazi Moayed said. “And you know, they literally made just one more play than we did. That’s the kind of night it was. It was about who was going to make the last play.”
Baker then drove the team down the field, coming through with a big throw when the team needed it most. On third and 10 around the SRV 30-yard line, Baker saw 6-2 receiver Zack Dodson marked by only one defender. Baker threw the ball up to his playmaker and was rewarded with a contested 33-yard snag.
“The defense had gotten a stop, and gave the offense one more chance,” Dodson said. “All we needed was that chance.”
A few more short gains set up Shelton with the chance to win the NorCal championship. The junior kicker had already made a 35-yarder in the third quarter, and his second field goal went right down the middle too. San Ramon Valley will play Granite Hills at Saddleback College on Saturday at noon.
“Today showed that these kids can win the game that’s presented to them, and not just perfectly scripted games,” Becker said. “It’s not always perfect, and sometimes you just have to figure out how to win at the end of the day.”
