Fumbles, turnovers and punts.
That’s what the game between the Santa Clarita Christian Cardinals and Cate Rams of Carpinteria consisted of when the teams dueled it out in the rain in the eight-man Division 2 California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section playoffs.
In the end, the Rams defeated the Cardinals, 15-6, and ended Santa Clarita Christian’s 2025 season Saturday night at College of the Canyons.
“We knew that we’d have to be dialed in and give [Cate] our best game, because even if we felt physically like we had an advantage, that the mental stuff was going to be a big deal,” SCCS head coach Austin Fry said. “We ended up seeing that, but I think that’s also the nature of a team that’s just gone through a lot of discouragement with injuries.”
On Saturday night, the rain played a significant factor as neither team was able to replicate its first-round success, when both teams won their matchups in blowouts.
Following the game, Fry noted that the rain was a challenge, and it limited his team’s offense to run the ball all night instead of trying to establish a pass game.
“It’s tough because we had a couple guys in spots down the field where normally, our run game really would have helped us out in that,” he said. “If we put the ball in the air, there’s a chance it’s going to be underthrown, way overthrown. So, they played it well. They came down on the run, really heavy and forced us to try to do things outside of the range. And the rain never really let up enough for us to establish anything other than a run.”
In the first quarter, as both teams forced multiple punts, it was the Rams’ defense that scored the first points of the game as the Cardinals fumbled the ball on a snap in the end zone, resulting in a safety.
As the game continued, the rain got heavier.
The results were fumbles that turned into tackles for loss, and offensive drives that turned into turnovers on downs. It was a defensive showing in the second quarter as the score remained for most of the first half.
But with 13 seconds left in the first half, the Rams scored a touchdown and took an 8-0 lead entering halftime as the Cardinals forced the missed PAT.
As the teams came out to the field for the third quarter, a win wasn’t out of the equation for Santa Clarita Christian as the Cardinals opened the second half with possession.
But the rain just kept coming down and forced another fumble from the Cardinals’ offense.
With field position within the Cardinals’ territory, Santa Clarita Christian caught a break as the Rams fumbled and committed a turnover on downs on the next play.
In the fourth quarter, after multiple turnovers on downs and fumbles, the Cardinals finally broke through as Caleb Shaffer ran for a 26-yard touchdown.
Despite the touchdown, the Cardinals still trailed and opted for the two-point conversion with Shaffer, but he was tackled short of the goal line.
In the final two minutes of the game, the Rams extended their lead with another touchdown and closed out the game.
After the game, Fry said he’s proud of his players for giving it their all.
“We came into this game with 15 available guys,” he said. “So, the fact that these guys kept plugging away day in and day out of practice is a testament to mental toughness, and I think they’re just tired and exhausted and I don’t blame them one bit.”
