Final Kick Brings Down Notre Dame

Despair. Elation. Despair again. All within little more than a minute for the Notre Dame High football team in the Southern Section Division III championship game against Arroyo Grande.

Blake Bigelow’s fourth field goal of the game, from 28 yards with 19 seconds remaining, gave the Eagles a 19-17 victory Friday night at Pierce College.

The Eagles held Justin Fargas to 78 yards in 19 carries, his lowest output of the season.

Notre Dame took a 17-16 lead with 54 seconds to play on a six-yard touchdown pass from Dave DeMartinis to Tony Arredondo and Juan Plascencia’s extra point.

Arroyo Grande got a 30-yard kickoff return from Jeremy Dennison, a 26-yard pass completion and 12 yards on two running plays to set up the winning kick and hand Notre Dame the division’s runner-up plaque for the second consecutive season.

“This is a horrible way to lose,” Notre Dame Coach Kevin Rooney said. “We had a chance to win, it seemed like we did win, and then we lost it.”

Rooney, a member of the Southern Section committee that voted Arroyo Grande, the Northern League’s fourth-place team, into the playoffs, may wish he could recall his ballot. But the estimated 7,000 fans at Pierce got their money’s worth.

Trailing, 16-10, Notre Dame (11-3) trailed drove to the Eagle 16, where it faced a fourth down and four with 2:15 to play. DeMartinis lofted a pass over the middle to tight end Joe Aragno, who appeared to catch the ball at the eight as he was taken down on a hard tackle.

The officials gave no immediate signal and the teams began to prepare for another Notre Dame play. But an incomplete pass was suddenly signaled and it appeared Arroyo Grande (10-3) would run out the clock.

“It looked to me like he caught the ball but the officials said he was bobbling it and it came out as he hit the ground,” Rooney said.

Four plays later, Cory Lawrence was hit by Fargas, playing safety, and his fumble was recovered and returned 34 yards to the Arroyo Grande six by Matt Boyd of Notre Dame.

On the next play, DeMartinis threw a high pass to Arredondo, who beat defender Nick Cornwell.

“Things were looking good at that point but I knew there was still time left,” Arredondo said. “This definitely hurts more than last year [a 20-14 title game loss to Camarillo] but I’m proud of our effort. It was a long, hard journey fought until the last second.”

Arroyo Grande left no doubt about its ground-based offense, driving 73 yards for a touchdown in 11 running plays following the opening kickoff to score on Mike McCreery’s three-yard run. Notre Dame went three downs and out on its only possession of the first quarter without giving the ball to Fargas.

Bigelow’s field goals of 34 and 24 yards, countered by a 31-yarder by Juan Plascencia of Notre Dame, made it 13-3 at halftime.

Arroyo Grande out-gained the Knights, 188-46, in the half.

Notre Dame pulled to within 13-10 with 9:40 remaining in the third quarter when DeMartinis hit Todd Fenton with a 29-yard touchdown pass.

The Eagles answered with Bigelow’s 25-yard field goal 2:40 later.

DeMartinis completed five of eight passes for 86 yards.

Seven Arroyo Grande runners totaled 253 yards.

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* THE SPIN

It’s a tough finish for Notre Dame’s Fargas. C12