SANTA CLARA — St. Francis started the season 0-2.
Twenty-two games later, the Lancers are the Central Coast Section Division I flag football champions after beating Branham 13-6 at Santa Clara High. It’s the culmination of a thrilling run through the first CCS playoffs for the sport that included a nail-biting 13-12 win over Aragon in the semifinals and a 32-18 win over Santa Clara in the quarterfinals.
To cap it off, St. Francis, the No. 3 seed, knocked off the top-seeded Bruins (15-9-1) thanks to a strong defense that made its final stand when Kaelin O’Shea batted down Sydney Short’s final fourth-down pass in plus territory, enabling the Lancers (12-11-1) to run out the clock.
“The key was really communication throughout,” O’Shea said. “Our rushers were insane today. I’ve never seen them move so fast. We had all of our rushers going top speed. They just wanted it. You could tell they had the drive, and they needed it. Their ability to get behind the blockers was really key today.”
Sofi Houston and Brooke Bennett caught touchdown passes from Zoe Tripp to power the Lancers’ offense. Bennett’s fourth-down, 4-yard snag was the game-winner in the fourth quarter.
O’Shea had a stellar final series defensively, making multiple flag pulls in addition to the critical pass deflection.
“This is what it’s all about,” St. Francis coach Sean Smith told his team after the win. “Everything is earned, not given. This whole season was a fight. We started out not the hottest. The vibes were not great, that’s OK. Look at the vibes now, right? You guys did this.”
Smith, a class of 2017 St. Francis tackle football alumnus, took over the Lancers’ flag team last season and led them to a 12-9 record. But there was no postseason in 2024.
This time, St. Francis had a chance to compete for a section title, and the Lancers made it count.
“It was a very special opportunity, especially for this being the first CCS ever,” O’Shea said. “Coming from a little bit behind in the league, we were underestimated. That alone gave us an underdog mentality that we were able to pull through. We used every single bit we had of the anger and the pain. We knew we had been working since July for this, and we were willing to put in the work. And anyone who’s willing to put in the work is gonna see success.”
O’Shea scored Branham’s TD on a 3-yard scramble right before the end of the first half.
Etc.
Also at Santa Clara High, No. 3 Priory took down top seed Presentation 21-20 in the CCS Division III championship game. Shay Johnson’s interception with 49.6 seconds left sealed the Panthers’ victory.
Priory finishes the year with a record of 11-4. Presentation ends the season 20-6.
In the CCS Division II championship held at San Mateo High, second-seeded host San Mateo beat No. 4 Burlingame 7-6. The Bearcats finish their championship season with a record of 12-4.
Burlingame finishes 12-8.
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