Oceanside highlights San Diego Section football champions

By Bill Dickens Dec 7, 2010, 11:04am

Pirates win seventh straight section title; Madison, Cathedral Catholic, Vista also win.

At 5-foot-9, 185 pounds, Oceanside senior running back-linebacker Noah Tarrant hardly strikes an imposing figure.

Yet, Tarrant will hold a prominent place in CIF-SDS football history after scoring six touchdowns to propel the perennial power Pirates to a 47-10 rout of Mission Hills in the Division II Section championship game.

Oceanside High's Noah Tarrant.
Oceanside High's Noah Tarrant.
File photo by Heston Quan
Not only did Tarrant break a 33-year-old CIF-SDS title game scoring record for touchdowns set by the legendary Marcus Allen of Lincoln in a 34-6 romp over Kearny in 1977, he led Oceanside to an unprecedented seventh straight section crown Monday at Qualcomm Stadium.

"I didn't even I know I had set a record until someone told me," said the always modest Tarrant. "It's so emotional. To break Marcus Allen's record means a lot."



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MADISON WARHAWKS FOIL VALLEY CENTER'S BOWL BID
Madison (San Diego), which has won 12 games in a row, earned the first title in school history since 1962 as the Warhawks knocked off previously unbeaten and No.1 ranked Valley Center 40-14.

Quarterback Chase Knox threw three touchdown passes and a career-high 385 yards for the Warhawks, delivering scoring tosses of 71 yards to Jeremy Hutchison, 15 yards to Kevon Mitchell and 47 yards to Desaan Hardwick as Madison mauled previously undefeated Valley Center 40-14 in the Division IV CIF-SDS finals.

Knox has been the driving force, serving up 28 scoring passes and averaging 220 yards per game. He has thrown seven scoring passes in key victories over Olympian and Valley Center the past two weeks.

Valley Center running back Travis Bernard finished with 129 yards on 28 carries and one touchdown in the Jaguars' loss. His season rushing totals reached 2,798 yards with 36 touchdowns. He scored 39 touchdowns overall.

SLOW START FAILS TO IMPEDE CATHEDRAL CATHOLIC'S CACHE
Teams that lose four of their first five games to begin a season usually aren't around come playoff time. That wasn't the case for the Dons of Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) this season.



The rebuilding Dons survived a woeful start and wound up knocking out rival Lincoln, 24-7, to capture their fourth straight CIF-SDS Division III championship.

The Dons led at halftime, scoring a touchdown on quarterback Garrett Bogart's 20-yard pass to J.J. Stavola. Jacob Roman kicked a 28-yard field goal that gave the Dons a 10-0 edge.

Running back Jonny Martin rushed for 163 yards and two touchdowns for the Dons.

VISTA PANTHERS DENY MIRA MESA
Some people may have wondered how a team with a 7-5 record could reach the CIF-SDS Division I finals, as did the Mira Mesa Marauders. Vista proved why they shouldn't have been there, as the Panthers (12-1) beat the Marauders 33-21 in the championship game.

Shakeel Marshall gave Vista the lead with second-quarter scoring runs of 2 and 81 yards, finishing with 179 yards on 20 carries. Joey McFadden led the supporting cast with 91 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.