CIF football: Righetti advances to state championship game
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Dec. 5—The Righetti playoff freight train isn't done rolling just yet.
The Righetti football team will play for a CIF State championship this weekend in Northern California after rolling to a 14-7 win over Irvine Northwood Saturday night.
The Warriors will play Atherton Sacred Heart Prep, located north of San Jose, in the CIF State Division 5-A championship game on Dec. 11 at 1 p.m.
Righetti's playoff run has been unlike any other. The Warriors entered the CIF Central Section playoffs with a 1-8 record. They then rolled through the Central Section Division 5 playoffs, winning the championship with a 34-7 win over Madera Liberty.
The Warriors out-scored their divisional competition 123-37. Winning a Central Section title put them in the CIF State SoCal Division 5-A Regional Saturday in Irvine.
It was the first CIF title for an 11-man program in the Santa Maria Valley and the Warriors' win Saturday night gave the Valley its first regional championship.
Now Righetti is going for the Valley's first ever state title.
The Warriors and Timberwolves were knotted in a scoreless tie through the first quarter in Irvine Saturday, but Righetti went up 7-0 on a 39-yard touchdown run by Elias Martinez with 11:50 left in the second.
The score was 7-0 at halftime and into the fourth quarter, when Righetti went up 14-0 on a 14-yard run by Bradley Spence and the Warriors were able to close out the game despite a late touchdown by Northwood and a fumble by the Warriors.
Righetti's Elroy Perez had a late interception to help seal the Righetti win.
Per Steve Fryer of the Orange County Register, Righetti limited Northwood running back Adam Harper to 57 yards on 22 carries after he had 214 yards on 34 carries in Northwood's win over Long Beach Jordan in the CIF Southern Section Division 11 title game last week.
Northwood ends its season 9-6. Their win over Jordan last week was the school's first CIF divisional title.
The Sacred Heart Prep Gators are 7-7 on the season. They beat Redding University Prep 20-0 on Saturday to win the NorCal Division 5-A regional. The Gators beat Cupertino Homestead 51-28 to win the CIF Central Coast Section Division 4 championship.
