Graves, Folsom end Serra streak

CARSON, Calif. – The Serra (Gardena, Calif.) Cavaliers brought a squad full of All-American-type candidates to the CIF Division II State Bowl Game on Saturday at the Home Depot Center. Folsom (Calif.) simply brought Captain America.

Dano Graves, a less-than-imposing figure at 5-foot-9 and 185 pounds, accounted for six touchdowns in leading the No. 20-ranked Bulldogs to the 48-20 upset win over the No. 18-ranked Cavaliers. The loss ended an undefeated season for Serra, which had won 29 games in a row entering the bowl game. The Cavaliers defeated Marin Catholic (Kentfield) 24-20 in last year's Division III bowl game and finished the year 15-0. Serra was 14-0 in 2010 with a Western Division Southern Section championship.

Folsom (14-1) won its 14th game in a row after losing in its season opener to Grant 49-14.

Graves completed 11 of 30 passes for 214 yards and three scores and also ran 20 times for 83 yards and three touchdowns. The six scores gave Graves an incredible 85 touchdowns accounted for on the season, including 62 via the pass and 23 on the ground. Graves finished the season with 236 completions on 363 attempts for 3,702 yards. He rushed 165 times for 996 yards.



The 85 touchdowns set a state record for most touchdowns accounted for in a single season. Graves actually broke the record in the win over Grant two weeks ago, topping the old mark of 78 set by Dillon Baxter of Mission Bay in 2009.

Graves' 62 touchdown passes fell just short of the state record of 63, held by Robert De La Cruz of Cathedral.

"We don't get the big 280-pound guys, the big-time athletes," said Folsom coach Kris Richardson. "We get guys like Dano who aren't big but just work and work and play the game. If he's not the state player of the year, I don't know who is."

The entire town of Folsom, located just east of Sacramento, would certainly agree with Richardson, and a number of Serra fans were probably convinced as well. Graves rallied the Bulldogs from a 20-14 deficit late in the second quarter and then scored four unanswered touchdowns in the second half to put the game away.

"That touchdown just before halftime was huge," said Richardson. "After we got the early lead, I think we relaxed a little bit. But we stayed calm and made some adjustments and that was the difference."

Folsom held the early 14-0 lead on a pair of Graves touchdown passes, but Serra rallied with three scores of its own to take a 20-14 lead. Graves got the lead back for the Bulldogs on a 2-yard run with 56.2 seconds left in the first half. He set up the touchdown with a 23-yard pass to Kori Babineaux and then a 17-yard completion to Marcus Hendricks.



Serra responded by quickly moving to the Folsom 7 on a 33-yard pass from Conner Preston to Lonnie Turner, but a field goal attempt with 8 seconds remaining went wide.

Neither team scored in the third quarter as both teams struggled to get anything going in the muddy field conditions that plagued the CIF state championships all weekend long.

"We don't want to use the rain as an excuse," said Serra coach Scott Altenberg. "We were playing pretty well in the rain. We had some chances we didn't take advantage of. They made the plays, we didn't."

Richardson noted that the rain wasn't the biggest problem for the Bulldogs.

"It wasn't the rain so much as the footing," said Richardson. "We've played in rain before, but getting the proper footing was difficult."

Proper footing and the ability to hold on to the ball proved to be pivotal for both teams in a period of 25 seconds that saw the Bulldogs turn a one-point lead into a 41-20 advantage.



After Tanner Trosin intercepted a Preston pass in the end zone, Folsom embarked on an 80-yard drive highlighted by a 45-yard pass from Graves to Jordan Richards. Another pass to Richards put the ball at the 26, and, from there, Graves ran three straight times including a 1-yard run for the touchdown with 11:11 left in the game.

Folsom got off a short kick on the ensuing kickoff and when Serra mishandled it, Dillon Wessing was there to recover at the 28. Graves needed just two plays to get into the end zone. A run gained one yard and then he hit Tyler Trosin over the middle for a 27-yard touchdown.

The pass was similar to a 42-yard pass from Graves to Trosin for the second touchdown of the game.

"We knew we could get man coverage on that play," said Graves. "Tyler just gave him the double move and he was wide open."

Wessing's kick with 10:56 remaining gave Folsom a 35-20 lead, but the Bulldogs weren't finished.

On the first play following the kickoff, Richards intercepted a Preston pass on the 35 and returned it the distance for the score.



Three touchdowns. Twenty-five seconds. Ball game.

Graves added a late touchdown following a Serra possession that ended with a fourth-down sack. Graves carried the ball eight of the nine plays on the drive and completed a 20-yard pass to Hendricks for the other. Graves went over from the 1-yard line for the final touchdown.

"We have athletes all over the field and we just never give up," said Graves. "I knew even after we lost to Grant in week zero that we had a chance to get here. We just didn't execute in that game. We just wanted it today."

Folsom opened the game by nearly running the kickoff back for a score. Tyler Trosin followed a squadron of blockers down the left sideline for 76 yards before stepping out at the 14. He got the touchdown two plays later on an 8-yard pass from Graves.

Folsom immediately forced a punt and then went up 14-0 two plays later. Graves found a wide open Trosin in the middle of the field for a 42-yard score with 8:14 left in the first quarter.

But the Cavaliers responded behind the play of All-American receiver George Farmer, receiver Marqise Lee and running back Shaquille Richard.



Lee got the Cavaliers on the board with a 25-yard pass reception from Preston. Lee caught the ball around the 15 and fought off three Folsom defenders to get into the end zone. Serra began the touchdown drive following an interception of Graves at midfield.

A quick punt on Folsom's ensuing possession put Serra at its own 35. On third down, Preston found Farmer down the seam for a 65-yard scoring pass on the first play of the second quarter. The extra point tied the game at 14-14.

Another Folsom punt set up Serra's final score. This time Richard did the bulk of the work, carrying five times the drive, including a 16-yard run for the score with 3:17 remaining in the half. The extra point hit the upright leaving Serra with a 20-14 lead.

Richard finished the game with 131 yards rushing on 23 carries. Preston completed 12 of 19 passes for 237 yards and two scores, but also had two interceptions. Farmer caught four passes for 113 yards and a touchdown while Lee caught four passes for 70 yards and a score.

The Bulldogs appeared stymied on their next drive, but Graves hit Babineaux with a 23-yard gain that set up Graves' short touchdown run just before the half. {VIDEO_015c0e3d-cce7-415a-884a-1bd077bf56e0,floatCenter}
FOLSOM 48, SERRA 20

Folsom 14 7 0 27 - 48
Serra 7 13 0 0 - 20

First Quarter
F - Trosin, Ty, 8 yd pass from Graves (Wessing kick), 10:45
F - Trosin, Ty, 42 yd pass from Graves (Wessing kick), 8:14
S - Lee 25 yd pass from Preston (Olloqui kick), 1:30



Second Quarter
S - Farmer 65 yd pass from Preston (Olloqui kick), 11:50
S - Richard 16 yd run (kick failed), 3:17
F - Graves 2 yd run (Wessing kick), 0:57

Fourth Quarter
F - Graves 1 yd run (Wessing kick), 11:11
F - Trosyin, Ty, 27 yd pass from Graves (Wessing kick), 10:56
F - Richards 35 yd interception return (pass failed), 10:46
F - Graves 1 yd run (Wessing kick), 3:09

First Downs: F 15, S 14
Rushing Yards: F 28-93, S 33-137
Passing: F 11-30-1-214, S 12-20-2-237
Fumbles/Lost: F 0-0, S 4-3
Penalties: F 3-19, S 6-60
Time of Possession: F 23:41, S 24:19

Individual Statistics
Rushing - Folsom: Graves 20-83, Richards 4-17, Ty. Trosin 2-4, Ta. Trosin 2-(-11). Serra: Richard 23-131, Farmer 1-8, Bateman 3-3, Preston 6-(-5).

Passing - Folsom: Graves 11-30-1-214; Serra: Preston 12-19-2-237.

Receiving - Folsom: Ty. Trosin 4-87, Richards 3-57, Hendricks 2-37, Babineaux 1-23, McMurtrey 1-10. Serra: Farmer 4-113, Lee 4-70, Turner 1-32, Ford 2-18, Murray 1-4.



Tackles - Folsom: Lueken 7, Ta. Trosin 7, Watson 6, Curry 6. Serra: Gibson 10, Lee 6, Maola 5.

Records - Folsom 14-1, Serra 14-1.