Football: Central Catholic 22, Bakersfield Christian 17

Modesto Central Catholic is 12 minutes away from repeating as the CIF state Division IV bowl champion.

The Raiders lead Bakersfield Christian 22-17 through three quarters at StubHub Center in Carson. Montell Bland dragged several defenders with him into the end zone on a 26-yard touchdown run to give the Sac-Joaquin Section winners an eight-point lead.

Bakersfield Christian narrowed the deficit to five on a 28-yard field goal by Nathan DeJager.

It’s been a long season for both teams and fatigue is setting in, but Central Catholic is starting to dominate the line of scrimmage and Bakersfield Christian could need a few big plays from quarterback Brandon Jones to pull it out.