The Dons shut out the Olympian Eagles for the second time this season to win their fifth straight CIF division III title with a score of 41-0. With the victory the Dons now have ended the year with three straight shut outs, allowing no points in the CIF playoffs. The dominance shown by the Dons in the past three weeks also undoubtedly puts them in the conversation for a state title bid.
The Dons defense continued their dominance of the year against Olympian in Qualcomm Stadium. In particular, they had a great pass rush going for most of the game that made it difficult for the Eagles to get the ball in motion. The Dons held Olympian to just over 100 yards of total offense and just five first downs for the entire game.
Offensively the Dons were as effective as they have been all year long, especially through the air. Junior quarterback Garrett Bogart was 12 of 17 for 281 and four touchdowns. Three of those touchdowns were to senior Brian Heinz who had a game to remember, finishing with 4 catches for 4 touchdowns and 123 yards. Senior tight end Andrew Pascale also had a touchdown on a great catch and run. Pascale ended the game with 2 catches for 108 yards.
The Dons also got a rare score on special teams. In the second quarter, junior defensive back/punt returner took a punt 55 yards to the endzone for a touchdown to make it a 20-0 game.
The Dons, for really the only time this year, were more successful through the air than on the ground. The Dons, as a team, ended the night with just 95 yards on the ground combined. Garrett Bogart alone had 281 yards passing on the day. Sophomore Brady Aiken ended the game at quarterback, getting himself a touchdown to Brian Heinz after Bogart got injured in the third quarter.
This Dons victory is the epitome of how the season went for Cathedral. A dominating defense and an extremely opportunistic offense makes for a very good football team, and the Dons proved that this season. The Dons had just about every type of game possible. From the nail biting, last second win over Torrey Pines, to blowouts over Scripps Ranch, Lincoln and others.
The Dons only loss of the year came to the top ranked Helix Highlanders at Helix High School. Considering how early on in the season that loss came, and the severity of the loss (a final of 48-14) it would not have been surprising for a team to give up entirely on the season. But not the Dons. Not only did Cathedral come out the week after to shut out Olympian for the first of two times 31-0, they also went on a 10-game win streak that included this fifth straight CIF title victory over Olympian.
The Dons will certainly be keeping an eye on the CIF division II title game. If the Oceanside Pirates can somehow come away with an 8th straight CIF title win against the Helix Highlanders, the Dons may just be the favorite to get the state title bid. Helix however is the heavily favored team and is much more talented this year than the Pirates.
The Dons end the 2011 season with a record of 12-1. They also end the year with an average of 31.6 points a game on offense. The Dons defense also only allowed an average of 3.8 points a game with a total of 6 shut out wins, a nearly unbelievable feat.