PRE-GAME INTRO:?This is the CIF semifinal game of the Southern Section’s Northwest Division with Tri-Valley League rivals Nordhoff and Bishop Diego meeting for the second time this season.?The teams met back on Nov. 1 in Ojai and Bishop Diego lost, 20-17, in a game in which they committed several turnovers, including a fumble in the end zone.
Nordhoff (11-1) is the defending division champion and this year’s second seed. The Rangers won last year’s title against North Torrance, which knocked Bishop Diego out in the semifinals last year. This is the third year in a row the Cardinals have reached the semifinal round. Bishop Diego (10-2) is the third seed. Top-seeded Oak Park faces off against No. 4 El Segundo in the other semifinal.
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FOURTH QUARTER
0:14 – Nordhoff intercepts an underthrown pass to the endzone. Game over. Nordhoff 24, Bishop Diego 21.
0:23 – Pass incomplete over the middle intended for Abel Gonzalez.
0:28 – Bishop Diego goes to Murillo twice more on quick outs towards the sidelines. Two passing plays advances Bishop to the 8-yard line. The Cardinals take a timeout. It’s 2nd-and-goal. A touchdown wins it. A field goal ties.
0:43 – On 3rd-and-7, BJ Murillo catches a ball between two defenders for a first down as Bishop Diego moves into Nordhoff territory. Another reception has the Cardinals on the Rangers’ 21-yard line. Now under a minute in regulation, the crowd of 4,000 or 5,000 is on its feet. There is a timeout on the field.
2:40 – Bishop Diego starts to move the ball downfield. A 16-yard gain by Anthony Carter gives the Cardinals a first down on their own 41-yard line. Carter happens to be Bishop’s place kicker. The first meeting between these two teams was decided by 3 points.
3:06 – Nordhoff’s Cooper Garcia misses his first field goal of the night on his fourth attempt, breathing life back into the Cardinals. Garcia misses left from 35 yards out.
4:40 – Bishop Diego completes a 9-yard pass to Alexis Herrera but gets stopped on 4th and 1. Anthony Carter and Abel Gonzalez bungle the handoff and the Cardinals lose yardage. Nordhoff suddenly has a strangle-hold of this game, holding possession in Bishop’s red zone and the lead.
6:17 – Playing conservative with the clock, Nordhoff hands it off three straight plays. Faced with a 4th-and-4 at midfield, Nordhoff too looks to get the first down until a false start backs them up further. Instead of going for it again, Nordhoff punts and the Cardinals will take over at their own 23-yard line.
8:24 – Nordhoff gets the stop on a key third-down play by Bishop Diego, forcing the Cardinals into a 4th-and-short situation. The Cardinals were lining up as if to go for it, but a false start penalty made it 4th-and-9. But because of where the Cardinals were on the field, they still went for it. A long pass falls incomplete and Nordhoff takes over on downs.
THIRD QUARTER
End of period – A quick flurry of scoring saw the two teams combine for 18 points in the final 3 1/2 minutes of the third quarter. Bishop Diego will start the fourth with 2nd-down and 9 on their own 26.
0:37 – Nordhoff’s Brandon Wadsworth picks up the Rangers with a long kick return that sets up Nordhoff with a 1st-and-10 and Bishop’s 33. Three carries from Woodcock and the Rangers answer Bishop Diego. Nordhoff will attempt the two-point conversion in order to take a 3-point lead. Workman is able to find Austin Wolcott in the back of the endzone. Nordhoff 24, Bishop Diego 21
1:37 – The Cardinals start this possession on their own 20. On the second play, quarterback Anthony Carter ?rolls out and finds Thomas Lash across the middle for a 33-yard catch. On first down, the Cardinals gobble up 18 more yards, which is then followed up by a 27-yard scoring run from Aidan Williams. Williams went untouched up the middle. On their first offensive possession since Gabe Molina went down, the Cardinals just bowled over Nordhoff, going 80 yards on four plays. Bishop Diego 21, Nordhoff 16.
3:13 – Cooper Garcia nails another field goal, this one from a distance of 34 yards. Garcia has hit 3-of-3 from 34, 37 and 50 yards. Nordhoff nearly found the endzone but a pass intended for an open Jake Boyd was slightly overthrown. The Rangers take their first lead since the first quarter. Nordhoff 16, Bishop Diego 14
5:25 – Molina is lifted into the ambulance as the crowd gives a supportive cheer. The break in the action has lasted nearly 15 minutes. The two teams take the field again and Nordhoff will have a 1st and 10 on their own 45. Matt Woodcock picks up 15 yards on the first play, then 20 more on the next play.
5:25 – There is a pause in the game as Bishop Diego’s Gabe Molina is being attended to for injury. Molina has been on the ground for at least five minutes with a possible head injury. The ambulance has driven on the field to take Molina away on a stretcher. It looks to be precautionary at this point as Molina did not appear to lose consciousness. Molina, one of Bishop Diego’s quarterbacks, was hurt on a team-tackle while playing safety on defense. Molina is also the son of Cardinals assistant coach Ralph Molina. Bishop Diego leads 14-13 at this time.
12:00 – Bishop Diego will receive the kickoff when the third quarter begins.
SECOND QUARTER
0:06 – Nordhoff took two plays to advance the ball 21 yards and into field-goal range. Cooper Garcia, who made a 37-yarder in the first quarter, is on the field to attempt a 50-yarder with six seconds on the clock. From the left hash-mark, Garcia’s kick clears the cross-bar. Bishop Diego 14, Nordhoff 13
0:27 – This time Nordhoff does produce the takeaway as BJ Murillo fumbles inside the Nordhoff five-yard line trying to reach the endzone after a pass completion. The ball is returned all the way to Nordhoff’s 46 yard line.
1:28 – Inside of two minutes before halftime, Bishop Diego is threatening to add to its lead. The Cardinals have possession on Nordhoff’s 28-yard line. The Cardinals just fumbled but recovered.
4:57 – Aidan Williams rumbles up the middle from five yards out for the Cardinals’ second rushing touchdown of the night. The Cardinals are a run-heavy team, having gained more than twice as many yards on the ground than through the air. Point after is good. Bishop Diego 14, Nordhoff 10
6:24- A timeout in the action has Bishop Diego driving. The Cardinals have 1st and 10 on Nordhoff’s 30 yard line. After big gains from Aidan Williams and Abel Gonzalez already on this drive, Anthony Carter completes a nine-yard gain to BJ Murillo.
8:42 – Nordhoff set up to kick another field goal but had a fake kick of its own not pan out. Place holder Taylor Brown took the snap and completed a pass to Koby Welch. The Rangers came up short however, giving the ball back to the Cardinals deep in their own territory.
11:04 – Nordhoff gets the turnover on downs as Bishop fakes a punt attempt on 4th-and-1. The Cardinals set up as if to punt, but attempted to run and Nordhoff was ready. The Rangers begin their drive on their own 41-yard line.
FIRST QUARTER
End of period – Bishop Diego holds possession on Nordhoff’s 48-yard line. Neither team has punted to this point. The Cardinals began this drive on their own 25-yard line.
3:15 – Nordhoff answers quickly. After Matt Woodcock breaks loose for a 60-yard run to give Nordhoff a 1st and goal on the 9, Tayler Livingston takes a handoff in from six yards out. Nordhoff 10, Bishop Diego 7
4:45 – Abel Gonzalez finishes off an 80-yard drive on a 1-yard dive. Cardinals score the game’s first TD. Bishop Diego 7, Nordhoff 3
8:53 – Cooper Garcia converts a 37-yard field goal for the game’s first points. Nordhoff 3, Bishop Diego 0
12:00 – Kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. at La Playa Stadium on the Santa Barbara City College campus.
It’s Tayler Livingston, not Taylor.