ALHAMBRA — For San Gabriel head football coach Marcus Galan, the feeling Friday night was all too familiar after the Matadors clinched their second championship appearance in three seasons
Two years ago, Galan, then an assistant for the Matadors, helped San Gabriel to a CIF-SS Division 13 title behind a bruising run game.
San Gabriel followed the same strategy and ran all over the Duarte Falcons for a 44-22 victory in the CIF-SS Division 14 semifinals.
“I was talking to coach (Kevin Encinas) and told him that I get the same vibe from these kids,” Galan said, comparing this year’s team to the 2022 championship run. “It took us a bit to get going but we caught fire at the end of the (regular season).”
The Matadors will play the winner of Ganesha and Whittier Pioneer in next week’s championship game
San Gabriel (7-6) secured its sixth consecutive win convincingly by rushing for 441 yards on 46 attempts, scoring on seven of nine drives. San Gabriel’s game plan was simple — hand the ball off to their dynamic duo, juniors Louie Navarro and Adam Mascorro. The tandem did not disappoint on the biggest stage as the two accounted for four total touchdowns and 78% of the total rushing yards.
Mascorro averaged 9.4 yards per carry and finished with 264 yards.
“Their offensive line is really good and they create holes,” Duarte head football coach Sergio Gradilla said of the difficulty in stopping the Matadors run game. “(Mascorro) is something else. He may be small in stature, but that kid runs like he’s 6-foot-2 and 220.”
Duarte’s loss ended the Falcons’ best season in decades and after the program fell to the deepest depths three years ago when it canceled its seasons in 2020 and 2021. Senior quarterback Avenn Ortiz and wide receiver Jashion Wade led the Falcons (11-2) all season before being held in check Friday night.
The Matadors defense held Ortiz to 13-of-25 passing for 189 yards, with an additional 62 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
On the game’s opening drive, Mascorro and Navarro took turns pushing the San Gabriel offense down the field. Mascorro capped off the 10-play drive with a 6-yard touchdown run for a 6-0 lead early in the first quarter.
San Gabriel rinsed and repeated this formula for 255 first-half rushing yards, scoring on all four of its first-half drives.
Duarte scored early in the second quarter via an Ortiz 12-yard touchdown completion to Jashion Wade, cutting the Matadors lead in half 14-7.
The Falcons’ struggles continued as they totaled 120 yards of offense in the first half.
San Gabriel responded with two more touchdowns — a 60-yard run by Aaron Rojas and a 14-yard run by Mascorro — to give the Matadors a 30-7 halftime lead. The Matadors’ first-half cushion powered their way to a 22-point victory.