5 SLO County teams reached the second round of the CIF playoffs. Only one survived

Of the five San Luis Obispo County teams that took the field in the second round of playoff action Friday night, only Morro Bay emerged with a victory.

In a rematch with Atascadero, the Pirates again soundly defeated the Greyhounds to advance to the semifinals of the CIF Central Section Division 5 tournament.

Three other local teams also met the same fate as Atascadero, although by much closer margins. And San Luis Obispo and Arroyo Grande’s losses were decided in the final minutes.

Morro Bay 42, Atascadero 14

Morro Bay’s dynamic offense prevailed again against Atascadero in the quarterfinals of the Division 5 playoffs.

The Pirates (6-6) beat the Greyhounds (6-6) 54-34 in the second to last regular season game before repeating the feat in the playoffs.

Receiver Ryder Busch led the way with three touchdown receptions and potentially could have had a fourth, but the score was called back due to a penalty.

Quarterback Sands Dougherty connected with Busch for the hat trick, along with single touchdowns to James Nickel and John Myers. Dougherty also rushed for a score in the first quarter when he eluded multiple defenders on a 40-yard run.

Head Coach Robert Dougherty said the team was “apprehensive” about playing Atascadero again, but his team has “hit their stride.”

Not only is their offense clicking, but the defense has drastically improved since the start of the season. In their first matchup against Atascadero, the Pirates allowed 34 points while scoring 54 of their own. This time, they held the Greyhounds to 20 fewer points.

Because of their small roster size and multiple players on both sides of the ball, the Pirates have been susceptible to fatigue in the past, leading to big plays from opposing offenses.

“I tihnk the kids are starting to learn their roles,” Dougherty said. “I know it’s late, but sometimes it takes a defense a long time to come together. I can’t put my finger on it, but they’re just playing better.”

With an improving defense, it only elevates the offensive attack, led by Dougherty. The junior ranks 11th in the nation in total yards (4,064) and 20th in passing yards (3,397), according to MaxPreps.

In California, Dougherty is second in totals yards. Myers is 23rd in receiving yards with 1,130.

The Pirates use a mix of short passes to get players in space to gain yardage. When the defense bites on short routes, that’s when they turn up field and find deep passes.

On one of his touchdowns in the second half, Busch ran an out route and Dougherty faked the pass before Busch turned up field and made the reception.

Multiple times, Dougherty launched the ball downfield to wide-open Pirate receivers, who’d beaten their defenders.

“I think our offensive line has been protecting really and well and also the help of Sands throwing the ball, getting it to everybody and making plays,” Busch said about the team’s offense.

Busch was a freshmen on the last Morro Bay team that won their division and went on to make a run in the state playoffs.

“I think it would mean a lot more to do it as a senior and with all my guys that I’ve been growing up and playing with all my life,” Busch said.

Next up, Morro Bay will travel to face No. 1-seed Bishop Union, with a trip to the championship game on the line. The Pirates lost to the Broncos in the playoffs last year.

“I really want to get our revenge on them and hopefully beat them and then make our way to the championship,” Busch said.

Central Valley Christian 21, San Luis Obispo 14

The Tigers (10-2) fell to the Cavaliers (7-4) of Visalia in the final minute of a road game marked by multiple turnovers on both sides.

Micah Paden, of Central Valley Christian, crossed the end zone on a 10-yard rush to give the Cavaliers a 20-14 lead with 48 seconds left, and the Tigers failed to score on a series of desperation laterals in the final seconds.

San Luis Obispo’s eight-game winning streak was snapped in the second round of the Division 2 playoffs.

SLO, ranked No. 6 in the bracket, was tied with their No. 3-ranked opponent at halftime.

Senior quarterback Jace Gomes started the scoring with a 28-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, and running back Colbin Garrison added a two-yard rushing score in the fourth quarter.

“We had a beautiful 10-play drive to start the game,” said SLO Coach Pat Johnston. “And then the offense stalled pretty much the rest of the first half.”

Johnston said the Tigers’ defense forced two fumbles, which SLO recovered, and they also had multiple third- and fourth-down stops to keep the contest tight throughout. But SLO also turned the ball over, including a fumble and an interception by Gomes.

SLO had another fumble on the lateral to end the game, and multiple 3-and-out sequences, uncharacteristic for the typically high-powered offense.

“I was talking to the head coach at Central Valley Christian before the game, and we agreed that it was probably going to be an evenly matched one,” Johnston said. “But it was going to come down to stuff like that. The turnovers are important.”

Johnston called his group that won the Sunset League at 4-0 a “special” one, including teammates who have played together since they were 5 and 6 years old. He recalls meeting them and coaching them in local camps and programs when they were kids.

“A lot of these guys have been best buddies since they were little kids,” Johnston said. “And some of them are related. This group feels very special to me. Just seeing them all grow up and turn into the young men that they are now makes me very proud of them, and we’re going to miss these guys a lot.”

Bakersfield 24, Arroyo Grande 21

The No. 4 Eagles (9-3) fell in a road heartbreaker in the Division 1-A playoffs to the No. 1 Drillers (11-1), losing on a field goal with 10 seconds left as the game was knotted at 21-21.

Arroyo Grande suffered some injuries in the game that set the team back.

Still, the Eagles built a 21-7 lead in the first half, led by junior Caleb Clark’s three touchdowns, two rushing and one receiving.

Coach Mike Hartman said that the Eagles were poised to kick a field goal before the first half ended, but the kicker slipped and the ball hit the offensive line. Bakersfield snatched up the loose ball and ran it back 80 yards to make it 21-14 before the half, a key swing of events.

“No coach in America has words that makes this feel better,” Coach Mike Hartman said. “The pain, the hurt, is real because of the investment that these young people put into the season.”

Hartman said the long hours in the off-season in the weight room and workouts, and the practice time and film study and “all the things that we asked them to do, they become invested and so it matters to them.”

“These seniors have a lot to be proud of,” Hartman said. “We’re back to back Mountain League champions. We’ve been in Division 1 (playoffs) the last two seasons. This year, we were a semi-finalist. And so, we’re very proud of the effort.”

Madera 35, Nipomo 21

Nipomo got out to a fast start after Trevor Oxley made an interception and Nick Evans scored on a 40-yard touchdown. They continued their momentum in the second quarter after quarterback Blayne Lowry made a deep touchdown pass to senior receiver Ayden Benzon and rushed in his own score.

But Madera, the No. 2 seed in Division 3, then held the Titans scoreless outside of a safety in the fourth quarter. The Titans (6-5-1) fell 35-21.

“We knew that (Madera) had a strong tradition of football,” Head Coach Stephen Field said. “We knew we could play with them and we did a majority of the game, but they took over there at the end.”

The Titans have made a drastic turnaround compared to two seasons ago when they didn’t win a game. Now, the team reached the second round of the Division 2 playoffs.

“It’s a reflection of our kids and the work they’re putting in and the belief,” Field said.

He added that this year’s team was special in the way they were able to come together.

“They were truly a team,” Field said. “Nobody was out there for themselves. We were playing team football, cheering each other on in the off-season and through the course of the season.”

The senior class the team graduates helped spearhead the turnaround.

“We’re proud (of the seniors) and what they’ve accomplished through their time here,” Field said. “Those guys were at the tip of the spear for that.”