Crusaders overcome six turnovers to beat the Mustangs in the final seconds

By Ray Hamill — It was worth the wait.

On Saturday afternoon, St. Bernard’s became the last H-DNL football team to kick off the new season, hosting St. Vincent de Paul in the most anticipated showdown of the weekend and a game that lived up to that billing.

Kind of.

Admittedly, it was sloppy at times, with the home team turning the ball over on its first three possessions of each half.

The Mustangs weren’t much better in that department, and had three turnovers themselves in the first half alone.

But it was a game that went right down to the wire and wasn’t decided until the final seconds, with both teams doing a lot of things well and showcasing why they are two of the most consistently competitive programs in the North Coast Section and two of the top-three ranked teams in NCS Division 7 this season.

The ending was certainly exciting and a conclusion the home fans will relish.

Trailing by seven and with time winding down, the St. Bernard’s defense came up with a huge stop to force a Mustangs punt with 3:06 on the clock.

They began the decisive final drive of the afternoon at their own 44, but quickly marched deep into St. Vincent territory to set up a first-and-goal from the 4, including a key 18-yard pass from quarterback Trenten Hagler pass to Braedon Simpson.

Four plays later, Hagler scored his first TD of the season on a one-yard run to give the home team an opportunity to tie the game and force overtime with a successful PAT.

That’s when things really got interesting.

The Crusaders, who had missed on a PAT earlier in the game, lined up for the kick, but left-handed kicker Cal Figas took the direct snap, rolled to his left and threw a completion instead to a wide-open Henry Hinrichs for the two-point conversion.

Check out video highlights of the play above …

That put them up 21-20 with just four seconds remaining, and they would seal the victory with a stop on the ensuing kickoff return.

While it was an impressive win over a St. Vincent de Paul team that won two state titles in the past three years, it was a performance that left a lot to be desired.

St. Bernard’s did not have a complete drive in either the first or third quarters that did not end in a turnover.

In his fourth year as a varsity starter at quarterback, Hagler showed plenty of promise and a commendable refusal to quit in the face of adversity, but he also threw four interceptions, a statistic this team will need to clean up if it is to reach its full potential this year with a roster that looks well capable of securing a first-ever outright Pacific League title (formerly the Big 4).

But despite the setbacks, Hagler epitomized his team’s fighting spirit with a gutsy performance and he did not allow the early setbacks in each half to take him out of his game.

The SB defense, meanwhile, did its part to keep them in the game, holding an experienced and extremely well coached Mustangs team to just three touchdowns on the afternoon, including the big stop late in the fourth quarter when they absolutely had to have it.

The Crusaders received the opening kickoff, but turned the ball over on Hagler’s first interception of the game just three plays into the first drive.

The Mustangs, who scored all three of their touchdowns on SB turnovers, took full advantage, marching 53 yards on 10 plays and scoring the opening TD of the day on a 21-yard pass from quarterback Willy Pederson to receiver Dylan Chelew.

Just two plays later, the Crusaders turned the ball over again, this time on an interception by Levi Kennedy, who had a big game on both sides of the ball.

This time, however, they were unable to take advantage, and just four plays into the drive Figas recovered a fumble to give the ball back to St. Bernard’s.

The momentum shift didn’t last long, and on the very next play the home team turned the ball over a third time on Hagler’s third interception of the opening quarter.

A sloppy opening period for both teams continued two plays into the ensuing drive, when the visitors gave the ball right back after a Pederson pass was tipped by St. Bernard’s Asher Floyd and intercepted by Simpson.

Hagler and the offense began to settle into the game, and took advantage of the takeaway, driving 75 yards on 10 plays and scoring their first touchdown of the year on a 33-yard pass from the quarterback to Garrett Shanahan.

A Figas PAT tied the game at 7-7.

The visitors answered with a nice 10-play drive, before it ended on yet another turnover, this time on a Mason Long pick.

The two teams traded punts after that, before the Crusaders took their first lead of the game just seconds before halftime, this time on a six-yard scoring pass from Hagler to Figas.

That score was set up on a well-executed hook and lateral from Shanahan to Jack Omey, a play that resulted in a 29-yard gain and put the Crusaders at the St. Vincent 11.

The second half began in much the same way as the first for the home team.

After the Mustangs drove to midfield on the opening possession of the half, the SB defense stopped them on downs.

But on the very next play, Omey fumbled the ball after a nice gain and the St. Vincent offense went to work again, driving 55 yards on five plays and taking the lead again on a one-yard Kennedy TD run.

On the very next play from scrimmage, the Crusaders turned the ball over a fifth time on Hagler’s fourth interception of the day, but the SB defense stood firm and forced a punt late in the third.

A sixth SB turnover on the ensuing drive gave the visitors possession at the Crusaders’ 34-yard line, and they would take advantage again five plays later when Pederson found the end zone on a five-yard run.

However, they would go for two in an attempt to stretch the lead to a pair of scores and came up short when SB’s Teqkauri Achane intercepted the ball in the end zone.

That play would prove decisive later in the quarter.

SB would drive into St. Vincent territory on the next possession but turned the ball over on downs with 4:28 remaining, before the home defense made its biggest stop of the day and forced a punt with just over three minutes left.

Ten plays later, with the help of three Mustangs penalties, the Crusaders pulled within one on Hagler’s short fourth-down TD run to set up the thrilling finish.

St. Bernard’s also won the JV game, improving to 2-0.

Next up, the Crusaders will host Heritage in another challenging early-season game.