FOOTBALL: Cougars Ousted in a Heartbreaker

The Score: Carmel 42, HMB 35.

The Star: Carmel High quarterback Devin Pearson engineered a comeback from a 21-point deficit with 16 minutes left to end Half Moon Bay's season in the Central Coast Section Division IV semifinals in Monterey. After leading an 86-yard touchdown drive to pull Carmel within one point with 22.5 seconds left, Pearson completed a game-winning, two-point conversion pass to Mason Braun.

The Turning Point: Carmel's two-point conversion in the final seconds. After Jimmy Osornio's 1-yard touchdown run cut Half Moon Bay's lead to 35-34 with 22.5 seconds left, first Carmel and then the Cougars called a timeout. Carmel elected to go for the win, and Devin Pearson rolled right and fired to Mason Braun in the right side of the end zone to position the Padres to prevail in the playoff thriller.

The Quote: "It's so much worse to be above and come down. … Obviously, crushed and sad." – Half Moon Bay lineman Frank Conrad, on his emotions after the Cougars saw their 35-14 lead vanish behind a furious Carmel comeback at Monterey Peninsula College.

What's Next? Fourth-seeded Half Moon Bay heads into the offseason proud it was within one defensive stop in playing in a CCS title game for the second time … but deeply disappointed that it couldn't protect a late 21-point lead. Top-seeded Carmel advances to meet the Menlo School vs. Sacred Heart Prep winner in the Division IV final on Saturday, Dec. 4.

The Bottom Line: Half Moon Bay had Carmel, the CCS Division IV defending champion, on the ropes. Behind four touchdown runs from Dominic Sena and a fantastic showing by the Cougar defense, Half Moon Bay was in position to claim the stunning victory. But then Carmel roared back to score 28 unanswered points – including a bruising, 17-play drive at the end -- to leave the Cougars agonizingly short of a hallmark victory.

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MONTEREY – When a rollercoaster of a game reached its climax, the Half Moon Bay High defense had two chances to stop Carmel with less than 25 seconds remaining to secure a spot in the Central Coast Section Division IV championship game.

But top-seeded Carmel found the end zone both times – with a touchdown run on fourth-and-goal and then the ensuing two-point conversion – and went on to hand No. 4 seed Half Moon Bay a season-ending 42-35 defeat in a thrilling CCS semifinal at Monterey Peninsula College on Friday afternoon.

"It's heartbreaking," said Half Moon Bay coach Matt Ballard, whose team fell just short of advancing to its second CCS title game.

On the strength of four rushing touchdowns from dynamic playmaker Dominic Sena and an inspired defensive showing against a high-powered attack, Half Moon Bay (8-4) streaked to a 35-14 lead when Jesus Huerta scored on a 1-yard TD run with four minutes left in the third quarter.

But Carmel (11-1) roared back behind its own offensive wizard – junior quarterback Devin Pearson – to pull within a touchdown with just under 10 minutes remaining. Then the Padres got the ball with 6:27 left and mounted a 17-play, 86-yard drive that culminated in the game's defining moments.

Facing a first-and-goal at the 7, Carmel suffered a setback when Half Moon Bay defensive lineman Frank Conrad tackled Pearson for a 5-yard loss. But then Carmel's Jimmy Osornio ran for 7 yards and Pearson connected with Marcus Lund on a 4-yard pass.

On fourth-and-goal at the 1, Osornio (68 yards on 16 rushes) powered behind the right side of his line for a touchdown that cut Half Moon Bay's lead to 35-34 with 22.5 seconds left.

After first Carmel and then the Cougars took a timeout, Carmel lined up to attempt a two-point conversion. Pearson rolled to his right and fired a pass to Mason Braun just past the goal line on the right side to put the Padres ahead 36-35.

"It's one of our go-to two-point conversion plays, and now I know why," related Pearson, who said Carmel only runs that play under such circumstances. "We try to hide the guy going to the flat."

Half Moon Bay's Sena returned the ensuing kickoff 23 yards to the Cougars' 28. But one play later, the Cougars fumbled and Osornio grabbed the loose ball and raced in for a 29-yard touchdown as time ran out.

"It just came down to little things, inches," Conrad said. "Obviously, we weren't favored, but I think we gave them their hardest game of the year."

Carmel coach Golden Anderson seemed to agree. "They were as good as advertised. (They were) as physical a team as we've played."

Carmel, the CCS Division IV defending champion, entered having scored at least 50 points in four of its last five games – including a 50-21 blasting of The King's Academy in the first round. The Padres, who averaged 47.8 points coming in, only lost once – 34-29 to Menlo School on Sept. 11.

But Half Moon Bay immediately showed it would continue the great momentum it had built from the middle of the season. Augustin Arroyo intercepted Pearson on the second play from scrimmage, and five plays later Sena ran in from 1 yard for a quick 7-0 lead.

The Cougars – and Sena – scored on their next two possessions as well. But even more impressive was Half Moon Bay's defense – a unit that allowed Carmel to score on just two of its five first-half possessions.

When Sena opened the second half by sprinting past the Padre defenders for an 80-yard touchdown run down the left sideline for a 28-14 lead, thoughts of a Cougar upset became realistic. And after the Half Moon Bay defense forced a turnover on downs at its 40, Huerta's touchdown run put the Cougars in complete control with a 21-point advantage.

"We were definitely a little shocked," said Pearson, who said he has recruiting letters from Boise State and Nebraska. "We hadn't been in that position this year."

But Carmel – and Pearson – were just getting warmed up.

First, Pearson (158 yards on 23 rushes) directed a blitz in which the Padres needed four plays and less than one minute to cover 70 yards. The quarterback himself raced up the middle for a 35-yard TD run, his third of the game.

Then Carmel, which had allowed more than 25 points just once, finally started to show its defensive capability by forcing a three-and-out. Osornio returned the ensuing punt 15 yards to the Half Moon Bay 41.

After just missing on a 19-yard TD pass to Lund, Pearson (20-of-27 passing for 161 yards, with one touchdown and one interception) converted a fourth-and-12 pass to Lund with 11:15 remaining. Then on another fourth-down play, the quarterback connected with Garret Woodward for a 3-yard touchdown.

"It took him a while, but he got his rhythm when he needed it," Ballard said of Pearson. "The key downs, he converted. He's a great athlete and we couldn't contain him."

Half Moon Bay advanced to Carmel's 37 on a 12-yard run by Sena, but then a holding penalty with 8:14 left moved the Cougars back to the 47. After an incomplete pass and a 2-yard Sena run, Half Moon Bay recovered its own fumble just beyond the line of scrimmage and had to punt.

That led to Carmel's bruising, game-winning drive.

Sena, who owns Half Moon Bay's single-game and career rushing marks, delivered one last memorable showing. The senior carried 32 times for a game-high 197 yards and four touchdowns.

Half Moon Bay junior quarterback Nate Seaton showed nice composure and touch on a handful of long passes, finishing 6-of-8 passing for 108 yards.

Afterward, even amidst the raw emotion immediately following the defeat, Ballard offered that the great semifinal battle the Cougars gave Carmel was a validation of sorts that his program can be a regular contender in the small-school CCS bracket.

"The first team was the groundbreaker, the '05 team," Ballard said of the 11-2 CCS championship squad. "And this year proved this is not a fluke. We can do this."

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Carmel 42, Half Moon Bay 35

HMB – 14 7 14 0 -- 35

C – 7 7 7 21 – 42

HMB – Sena 1 run (kick failed)

C – Pearson 10 run (Franks kick)

HMB – Sena 5 run (Sena run)

HMB – Sena 4 run (Gutierrez kick)

C – Pearson 25 run (Franks kick)

HMB – Sena 80 run (Gutierrez kick)

HMB – Huerta 1 run (Gutierrez kick)

C – Pearson 35 run (Franks kick)

C – Woodward 3 pass from Pearson (Franks kick)

C – Osornio 1 run (Braun pass from Pearson)

C – Osornio 29 fumble return

RUSHING:  HMB: Sena 32-197, Huerta 6-27, Walters 1-2, Seaton 1-1. Totals: 40-227.  C: Pearson 23-158, Osornio 16-68. Totals: 39-226.

PASSING:  HMB: Seaton 6-8-0-108, Sena 0-1-0-0. Totals: 6-9-0-108.  C: Pearson 20-27-1-161.

RECEIVING:  HMB: Garcia 1-46, Fama 3-31, Sena 2-31.  C: Lund 7-60, Knight 6-32, Braun 3-39, Woodward 2-12, Reimer 1-11, Enriquez 1-7.

FUMBLES/LOST:  HMB: 2/1.  C: 0/0.

RECORDS:  Half Moon Bay 8-4.  Carmel 11-1.