St. Vincent season ends with loss in Gold Country

Gold country yielded no bonanza for St. Vincent High School’s Mustangs Friday. After a nearly 3-hour bus ride, St. Vincent was beaten by Argonaut’s like-named Mustangs 42-12 in the first-round of the California Interscholastic Federation state Division 6AA playoffs.

The win gives Argonaut the Northern California title for the division 6AA teams and earns their Mustangs the right to play for a state championship back on its home field against the Southern California regional champion Saturday night.

The loss was only the second of a dream season that saw St. Vincent’s Mustangs go 11-2, win a share of the North Bay League Redwood championship and win a North Coast Section football title.

Despite their successes, when the end came for the Petaluma-based Mustangs, it hurt in more ways than one.

Emotionally, the seniors – Dante Antonini ,Carter Payte, Killian Collins, Jake DeCarli, Liam O’Hare, Riley Gilfillan and Dominic Minton - were left with the realization that they had played their final football game for St. Vincent.

But the hurt was also physical. Within a minute in the first quarter, St. Vincent’s acknowledged two best players, Dante Antonini and Kai Hall, limped off the field with ankle injuries. Both returned, but were hampered throughout the game. The injuries took away at least a portion of St. Vincent’s big-play capabilities.

But the injuries were not what ended the St Vincent season. The end came because Argonaut had the better football team. For the first time all season, St. Vincent was handled up front and faced with speed from multiple sources.

“They were physically tough,” said St. Vincent coach Trent Herzog. “They beat us up front on both sides of the football. They are a good, well-coached team.”

With spectators filling both stands and watching from vehicles in the nearby parking lot, St. Vincent started in spectacular fashion. On the third play from scrimmage, Antonini broke through the Argonaut front line and was gone 61 yards for the night’s first touchdown.

The conversion kick sailed wide, but for a few bright minutes, it looked as though the St. Vincent season might be destined to continue.

But, on this night, destiny belong to Argonaut.

Following a good kickoff return, the host Mustangs zipped 55 yards in just seven plays, with quarterback Beau Davis doing the scoring honors from the 5-yard line. Jesse Flores kicked straight on the conversion and Argonaut had a 7-6 lead, an advantage it would never give up.

St. Vincent went three-and-out in its second possession, and here the Argonaut Mustangs came again, with Davis again in the end zone, and the tone for the game was set.

St. Vincent showed two could play the drive game late in the first round. Junior quarterback Jaret Bosrage directed his team on a 65-yard march, hitting key passes to Nathan Rooks and Jake DeCarli on an impressive march that took it to the Argonaut 10-yard line.

But in a key sequence, St. Vincent ‘s drive was stopped by the aggressive Argonaut defensive front, and the Petalumans produced no points for their efforts when a 23-yard field goal try by Gavin Tank Cresetto sailed wide.

Argonaut tacked on a third first half score on a 14-yard run by Mateo Flores in the second quarter to lead 21-6 at the break.

There was no dramatic St. Vincent change of fortune in the second half.

The Mustang defense continued to be befuddled by the Argonaut offense that featured handoffs, fake handoffs and all forms of miss-direction play variations.

“Their misdirection hurt us,” Herzog said. “We hadn’t seen anything like it all year.”

St. Vincent’s Mustangs may have been a bit overmatched, but they were not outplayed. Midway through the third period, Hall, Bosarge and Nathan Rooks led a 60-yard march that ended with Bosarge throwing 10 yards to Jack Davis for what would be the last St. Vincent touchdown of the season.

Bosarge’s conversion pass attempt was batted down, but St. Vincent still had hope, trailing 21-12.

That hope flamed even brighter when Antonini recovered a fumble at the Argonaut 41-yard line on the first play from scrimmage following the kickoff. But St. Vincent could do nothing with the turnover and Argonaut slugged right back with a 67-yard drive that ended with Caleb Mcelfish in the end zone for a 28-12 lead that pretty well sealed things.

The Jackson-based Mustangs added two more scores against the tiring Petaluma-based Mustangs in the fourth period.

St. Vincent, game to the end, put together a closing drive that covered 70 yards, mostly on the rushes of Rooks who carried on four consecutive plays. The game and the season ended with Bosarge passing to Antonini who was tackled on the 5-yard line as the horn blared the end to an exceptional St. Vincent season.