Centennial Reflects On Loss In State Championship

(CBS/Rahshaun Haylock) --  "It just wasn't our night" uttered Matt Logan late Friday night. 

It started with a bus ride that lasted two and a half hours from the Corona campus to the Home Depot Center in Carson.  Corona Centennial was a 20 point favorite in their Division I State Bowl game against Palo Alto. 

 The team that averaged 54 points a game didn't even reach the 20 plateau.  The Huskies were supposed to be the lone "given" for the three Southern Section teams in State Bowl competition this weekend. 

Instead they were stunned by a gritty bunch from Palo Alto 15-13. 
 
The Huskies turned the ball over twice on their first four plays from scrimmage and before the crowd could get settled in on the wet and rainy night in Carson, they found themselves trailing 2-0 after a bad snap went past quarterback Michael Eubank and into the endzone for a saftey. 
 
What ensued was more penalties and more fumbles for the Huskies and more points for the Vikings.  Senior quarterback, Christoph Bono, son of former NFL quarterback Steve Bono, connected on two touchdown passes in the first half.  The first, an 11-yarder to Davante Adams, and just before the half ended he found Maurice Williams for an 80-yard score.  There were few objects as slippery as Bono was on this wet night.  He constantly was able to elude Husky pressure and find receivers downfield as the Vikings took a 15-0 lead into the locker room at halftime. 
 
Not only were the Huskies blanked in the first half, but they also lost starting tailback Barrington Collins for the game with a concussion. 
 
Centennial finally got on the board with 8:16 left in the third quarter after a Romello Goodman four-yard touchdown run.  That was set up by a Eubank 75-yard run. 
 
In the fourth quarter, Eubank scored on a 33 yard touchdown to get the Huskies within two.  But he was stopped short on the ensuing two-point conversion. 
 
The Huskies would get the ball back and with 35.4 seconds, Ezequiel Rivera came on to attempt a 42-yard field goal for the lead but was well short as Palo Alto would hang on for a 15-13 win.  
 
Corona Centennial committed 11 penalties for 112 yards.  Eubank, in his final prep game, completed eight of 18 passes for 81 yards.  He finished with 141 yards on the ground and touchdown on 17 carries.  Bono finished with 220 yards and two touchdowns for the Vikings.
 
This is the first state title for Palo Alto.