Live Oak’s Cinderella run came to a sudden end on Nov. 24 with a 52-17 loss to Half Moon Bay in the semifinals of the CCS Open Division III playoffs.
With the loss, the Acorns conclude their season with a 7-5 overall record.
Live Oak showed its mettle this season following a rocky start to kick things off but finished on a high note heading into the playoffs.
After winning their opener, Live Oak dropped three in a row, including a heartbreaking double overtime loss to Christopher and a league opening loss to Westmont.
The Acorns responded by winning three straight and went into Oak Grove with a chance to capture a Mt. Hamilton Division title. But after a hard-fought game, Live Oak settled for second place and entered the playoffs with a head of steam.
“We had a great turnaround this year from the beginning of the season,” said coach Mike Gemo. “They believed in the system, took second in a very tough Mt. Hamilton Division and made it to the second round of the playoffs beating a West Catholic School. They should be proud themselves.”
The Acorns kept things close for a half, as Half Moon Bay opened up with a 6-0 lead after the first quarter and a 20-0 lead into the second quarter.
But Live Oak came fighting back, putting up 10 points to cut the deficit in half before a late field goal put the Cougars up 23-10 at the half.
In the third quarter, Half Moon Bay pulled away and Live Oak wasn’t able to keep up.
“They’re a good football team. They did what they did and did it really well,” Gemo said. “We weren’t making enough plays and they built a good lead on us.”
Live Oak’s two touchdowns came by way of a big play with Jonathan Singleton throwing an 80-yard pass to Cole Davis in the second quarter and a long bomb to Christian Guary in the third quarter.
Caleb Ojeda kicked a 33-yard field goal in the second quarter to round out Live Oak’s scoring.
Half Moon Bay will now play for a possible second straight CCS title, taking on Terra Nova on Saturday. A year ago, the Cougars defeated Menlo School for the CCS Division V Championship.
