Merced’s flurry of second-half turnovers helps Oakdale rally for football playoff win

A nightmare third quarter by the Merced High School football team that included three interceptions and a blocked punt allowed Oakdale to seize control of the game.

The No. 4 seeded Mustangs (8-3) outscored the No. 5 Bears (8-4) 28-0 in the third quarter to erase a seven-point halftime deficit as Oakdale rallied for a 56-35 win in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III quarterfinals on Friday night at the Corral.

“Anytime you put the T.O. in front of anything, things are not good,” said Merced coach Rob Scheidt, who also saw the Bears eliminated from the playoffs against Oakdale in 2016 and 2019. “In a game like this a turnover is going to be the death nail and that’s pretty much what happened to us tonight.”

The Bears had the momentum after a high-scoring first half that saw Merced take a 28-21 lead into intermission.

Both offenses were clicking with the Bears moving the ball through the air and with running back Chase Smith on the ground. Oakdale’s wing-t was also churning yards behind a strong offensive line with running backs Wes Buford, Gabe McDonald and Joseph Delte carrying the ball.

The difference was a 60-yard interception return by Merced linebacker Anthony Mendoza that gave the Bears a 28-21 lead late in the first half.

McDonald said the Mustangs regrouped at halftime.

“The conversation was how are we going to respond to adversity because our team is known for responding to adversity and just wanting to have the will to play,” McDonald said.

McDonald helped the Mustangs seize momentum in the second half with a 47-yard touchdown run that pulled Oakdale even with Merced at 28-28 with 10:04 left in the third quarter.

Then the flurry of Merced turnovers began as Bears quarterback Quintell Dupree threw the first of three third-quarter interceptions as Oakdale’s Jackson Gilton picked off a pass on Merced’s first play of the second half.

The Mustangs took over at the Bears’ 29-yard line and scored five plays later with McDonald scoring his second touchdown with a 2-yard run to give Oakdale a 34-28 lead with 8:20 left in the quarter.

Merced appeared to right the ship on its next drive as the Bears moved the ball down near Oakdale’s 10-yard line, but Dupree tried to pass the ball over the middle and Oakdale’s Tommy Chase came away with an interception near the end zone.

Merced’s Julian Higareda recorded one of his three interceptions on the night to give the ball back to the Bears briefly. However, a high snap on the punt led to Oakdale blocking the kick and Gilton scooped it up and ran the ball in from 7 yards out for a touchdown and a 42-28 lead with 1:30 left in the quarter.

“I didn’t think the second half would go the way it did but it did,” Scheidt said. “None of things we wanted to do happened in the second half.”

Delte picked up Oakdale’s third interception of the third quarter on Merced’s next possession and that set up his own 14-yard touchdown run to extend the Mustangs’ lead to 49-28 with 49 seconds left in the third quarter.

“The defense did a great job coming up with some timely turnovers,” said Oakdale coach Garrett Martin.” We definitely haven’t done that a ton this year so that was a big moment for them.”

The Mustangs offense didn’t need much help. McDonald finished with 149 rushing yards on 18 carries to go with the two scores. Buford added 144 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries and Delte rushed for 103 yards and a touchdown.

“We have a very good offense,” McDonald said. “It takes everybody, if one person messes up it won’t work. We’re just a very good team and we have a good team bond.”

Smith led the Bears with 109 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. Higareda caught five passes for 62 yards and a touchdown to go along with his three interceptions on defense.

Oakdale advances to face top seed Grant next week. The Pacers defeated No. 8 Linden 82-7 on Friday.

“I don’t think Oakdale has ever played at Grant,” Martin said. “It’s a great opportunity for us. Two big programs that have a long storied tradition in the playoffs.”