CHULA VISTA — Battling a double-digit deficit for the majority of the game, the Cathedral Catholic High School football team staged a remarkable comeback with three fourth-quarter touchdowns to defeat Carlsbad 20-16 in the CIF San Diego Section Open Division championship on Tuesday night at Southwestern College, which drew an estimated crowd of 8,000.
“To be down like that, while we were making mistakes on every offensive series, to come back like this, that win has to be right at the top,” said Cathedral Catholic coach Sean Doyle after celebrating his team’s 12th San Diego Section championship.
The Dons, who will move on to the Southern California Regional with pairings set to be announced on Sunday, experienced loss to Lincoln in this game last year, and last secured an Open Division title in 2021 against Carlsbad.
After trailing 16-0, following a 47-yard touchdown pass from Eli MacNeal to Travis Jeffery for No. 3-seeded Carlsbad (10-2) with 10:02 left in the third quarter, No. 4-seeded Cathedral Catholic (10-2) seemed to be fighting an uphill battle.
However, the Dons found their rhythm in the fourth quarter, executing an 85-yard drive in nine plays that culminated in a 5-yard touchdown run by Honor Fa’alave-Johnson.
After forcing a punt from Carlsbad, Cathedral Catholic took possession at their own 27 and drove 73 yards in just four plays, with quarterback Brady Palmer connecting on a 71-yard touchdown pass to Isaac Cook. Despite the extra point, the Dons were still down 16-13 with 6:32 remaining.
“Isaac is such a key player for us,” Palmer remarked. “He’s someone I can depend on. Plus, the offensive line held their blocks. It was a team effort.”
Following another Carlsbad punt, the Dons regained possession at their own 29 with just 2:14 on the clock.
That’s when Palmer and Fa’alave-Johnson took charge.
Palmer completed three passes for a total of 34 yards, while Fa’alave-Johnson carried the ball for 5 and 12 yards before scoring from 2 yards out with only 21 seconds remaining.
“That’s Cathedral Catholic football,” Fa’alave-Johnson stated. “We may start slowly, but we always finish strong.”
The game concluded dramatically with Ryder Molchanoff sacking Carlsbad quarterback Eli MacNeal on the final play.
Holding a 16-13 lead, Carlsbad was at the Cathedral Catholic 39 with 4:01 left, but a botched snap resulted in a 12-yard loss and ultimately led to a punt.
“We were on the move and I thought we could finish it, but the snap really hurt us,” reflected Carlsbad coach Thadd MacNeal.
“They deserve credit; they’re a strong team up front and wore us down.”
Carlsbad had a 10-0 lead at halftime, starting with an 80-yard drive resulting in a touchdown after Cathedral Catholic had two touchdowns negated. The Lancers scored on a 27-yard pass from Eli MacNeal to Ethan Meyerhoff, with a 29-yard pass to Rocky Cummings on the same drive.
Cathedral Catholic had one touchdown called back for an ineligible lineman downfield, and another score was nullified when Palmer was penalized for aiding the runner after a 1-yard touchdown run.
Todd Mitchell intercepted a pass at Cathedral Catholic’s 44 on the next drive.
Carlsbad reached the Dons’ 20 before Beckham Filippini successfully kicked a 37-yard field goal.
Fa’alave-Johnson recorded 18 carries for 106 yards, with 10 of those runs being under five yards.
Palmer completed 13 of 21 passes for 251 yards, but was intercepted twice.
“All the adversity we faced this year has prepared us,” Palmer concluded. “That’s what makes this team truly special.”
Due to two sacks and the bad snap, Carlsbad managed only 58 rushing yards on 28 attempts. Eli MacNeal completed 21 of 25 passes for 270 yards and two touchdowns.
This marked Carlsbad’s fourth consecutive loss in the Open Division championship, following defeats to Helix in 2019, Cathedral Catholic in 2021, and Lincoln in 2022.
“That was quintessential Carlsbad football,” coach Thadd MacNeal noted. “I work with remarkable kids. They fought until the end.”
Cathedral Catholic 20 Carlsbad 16
Cathedral Catholic 0 0 0 20 — 20
Carlsbad 0 10 6 0 — 16
C — Meyerhoff 27 pass from MacNeal (Filippini kick) C — FG Filippini 37 C — Jeffery 47 pass from MacNeal (run failed) CC — Fa’alave-Johnson 5 run (pass failed) CC — Cook 71 pass from Palmer (Bergman kick) CC — Fa’alave-Johnson 2 run (Bergman kick)
