San Joaquin Memorial’s bid to return to state title game falls short against Serra
.jpeg "San Joaquin Memorial running back Jordan Hornbeak scores on a 3-yard run in a California Interscholastic Federation Division 1-A Northern California Regional. Serra-San Mateo defeated the Panthers 28-16.")
It wasn’t ideal conditions in San Mateo when San Joaquin Memorial faced Serra High.
Nonetheless, the Panthers got within five points in a sideways rain storm before the Padres got a late touchdown in a 28-18 victory in the California Interscholastic Federation Division 1-A Northern California Regional on Saturday afternoon.
Memorial ends the season 12-2 after a season in which the Panthers captured another County/Metro Athletic Conference title.
SJM coach Anthony Goston had an inspiring message to his players after the game.
“Games like this are tough because in sports everything comes to an end,” Goston told his players. “We played good football and did a lot of great things and proud what we’ve accomplished. Three section championships in a row and to represent the section in the state. Not bad for a school of 500 kids.”
Memorial is one year removed from reaching the state championship Division 2-A game.
The Panthers hoped to make a return trip to Cerritos College for the state final, but an early hole made things tough.
Memorial trailed 14-0 after a fumble at midfield that led to a Serra touchdown.
But the Panthers answered when Finn Collins connected with De’Von King for a 46-yard touchdown with 5:02 left in the first quarter.
Memorial threatened again before settling for a 24-yard field goal by Carlo Bravo to trail 14-10 with 10:45 remaining in the first half.
An interception return for a touchdown late in the third quarter gave Serra a 21-10 lead.
But the Panthers didn’t go away quietly, scoring on Jordan Hornbeak’s 3-yard run with 11:27 remaining to trail 21-16.
Serra sealed the win when Jackson Lataimua scored on a 3-yard run with 3 minutes remaining.
The Panthers had possession prior to Serra’s touchdown, but couldn’t get anything going.
“They went on a long drive to score that put them up 28-16 and that took a lot of time off the clock,” Goston said. “We got it it back and didn’t do much and they controlled the time of possession in the second half. We shot ourselves in the foot a couple of times.”
This story was originally published December 7, 2019 at 4:06 PM.
