MODESTO — Turlock High football coach James Peterson, with the steely nerve of a riverboat gambler, called for a two-point conversion in overtime, resulting in a 43-42 victory over powerhouse Central Catholic on Friday in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division 1 quarterfinals at David Patten Field.
The victory propels the Bulldogs into the semifinals for just the third time in school history, the last coming in 2022 when, coincidentally, Turlock won a quarterfinal matchup over parochial power St. Mary’s (Stockton), 51-50, with a game-winning two-point conversion.
“I knew we were going for two,” said Peterson. “We were the road guys, so we knew we were going for it.”
It couldn’t have looked easier.
After Central Catholic took a 42-35 lead thanks to a 14-yard burst by Joey Alcutt, and a PAT by kicker Carlos Leon York, Turlock tied the game moments later when quarterback Scout Silva scampered in from the 14.
Everybody in the stadium sensed that the Bulldogs weren’t looking to tie, but were instead looking for a kill shot.
Silva stepped to his right and found a wide-open Alex Ventura on the right side of the end zone for the winner.
“I saw the man coverage and I knew (Wyatt Dragoo) couldn't guard my guy, so I went right to him,” said Silva.
Central Catholic scored to go up by 35-27 with a 1 minute, 11 seconds remaining in regulation. Facing first-and-goal from the 10, the Raiders could’ve run four consecutive dives into the line and chewed up the most of the remaining time on the clock, but Turlock wisely let Alcutt score to make it 34-27. York added the PAT to make it an eight-point margin.
The Bulldogs marched 63 yards on seven plays — getting a 19-yard pick-up on a Silva completion to Junior Silva, and gaining 24 yards on a completion to Ventura— and capped the drive with a Silva-to-Silva 8-yard hook-up with 13 ticks left.
On the two-point conversion, Silva found Jeremiah Stine in the end zone to tie the game and force overtime.
The Bulldogs forged a 19-0 lead with just over 4 minutes to play in the first half, but Central Catholic rallied for a score in the final minute to make it 19-7.
The Raiders looked like a different team in the second half, scoring 20 unanswered points to make it 27-19 with 6:04 to play.
Turlock tied it on an 8-yard quarterback keeper by Silva, and a two-point hook-up from Silva to Leo Contreras.
Silva finished the game completing 14 of 19 passes for 164 yards, while Alcutt had 161 yards and four touchdowns on 26 carries.
Central Catholic, despite having an enrollment about one-sixth the size of Turlock, came into Friday’s game as the favorite. The Raiders were searching for their record 21st section title.
Turlock will play Oak Ridge in the semifinals on Friday, a team that has ended their playoff runs in 2018, 2019, 2022 and 2023.
