Butte falls to American River in Northern California championship game
American River, a team that had lost to Butte on Nov. 5, served its vengeance defeating No. 1-seeded Butte 15-9 for the Northern California championship Saturday afternoon on a muck filled field at Cowan Stadium.
Trailing 9-7, ARC quarterback Griffin Dahn found Lee Reed for a 31-yard gain to move inside Butte's 5. But a pivotal holding penalty would call the play back. The flag would only lead to Dahn's next pass, a 44-yard completion to Torian Williams, who broke two tackles to cross into the end zone with 44 seconds left for the go-ahead touchdown and the decisive score to end Butte's season and silence the packed home stands at Cowan Stadium.
Second-seeded American River advances to the state championship game on Dec. 10 to face Fullerton, which defeated Riverside 45-29 for the Southern California championship.
Saturday's loss snaps Butte's seven-game win streak and wraps up a 9-3 season.
"They threw the ball at the end when they needed to and we couldn't bat it down as well as we played all year. We had plenty of opportunities," Butte head coach Jeff Jordan said. "We just didn't make a play. They threw the ball up and we didn't make a play."
Butte quarterback and Chico High alum Clayton Welch completed 5 of 11 passes for 87 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Welch, who suffered a sprained right ankle in the second quarter on a run, spent the rest of the game limping and didn't run the ball. He finished with six carries for 18 yards before getting injured.
Martin Fleming Jr. ran for 104 yards on 28 carries while running back Alex Laurel added 33 yards on 10 carries. Chico High alum Miles Fishback ended the day with one catch for 39 yards while Hassan Bailey had two catches for 39 yards and a touchdown.
Butte led 9-0 for three quarters before ARC began to pick up some momentum in the fourth quarter. The Roadrunners scored twice in the first quarter. Israel Farfan chipped in a 32-yard field goal with 8:56 left in the first quarter that put Butte ahead 3-0.
Then with 1:18 left in the first quarter, Clayton Welch connected with Bailey for a 35-yard touchdown pass. With the missed extra point, Butte would lead 9-0.
In the fourth quarter, on third down and 9 at the Butte 14-yard line, Laurel spun to fight for more yards but fumbled the ball that ARC's Patrick Walker recovered. On the ensuing drive that began at Butte's 21, Dahn ran for a couple short gains which would lead to an 11-yard touchdown pass to Damen Wheeler Jr. that cut down Butte's lead 9-7 with 10:30 left in the game.
Butte would answer with back-to-back drives that ended with an Erick Ruiz punt. American River would begin its game-winning drive from its own 20 and march down field on nine plays that was highlighted by the 44-yard touchdown pass to Williams with 44 seconds left.
With Welch's ankle injury, backup quarterback Craig Contreras would come out for the final drive of the game but came up empty on four incomplete passes.
Once Contreras' pass on fourth down fell incomplete, the American River sideline erupted in celebration and after time ran out the Beavers stormed the field to celebrate in the mud.
"They're a great coached football team. They're big, they're athletic and it's fun battling with them," Welch said. "We came here to win championships and play tough games. They got us today and that's how football goes."
The last time both teams faced off at ARC, Butte won in a tension-filled double overtime game 21-14. Last season, Butte defeated American River at home on a last-second Hail Mary pass to Fishback that resulted in a 27-24 win for Butte.
Saturday, it was American River that kept its season alive.
"Every game we've had with them, it's come down to the last play," Jordan said. "Over the last six games, it's come down to the last play. I wasn't surprised this one came down to it too. I just pictured it going the other way."