Riordan hangs on to win after late Hail Mary as Pittsburg storms back from multiple 21-point deficits

SAN FRANCISCO Archbishop Riordan sure knows how to give its fans a scare The Crusaders are an exceptionally talented company that can get out to huge leads against the majority opponents But if those opponents are match for a fight there are opportunities to get back in it Riordan built a three-touchdown lead in its - win over Pittsburg on Saturday in San Francisco but the Pirates totally would not go away The Pirates whittled the - first-half deficit all the way down to a outcome and had a shot to tie with a final Hail Mary But JaVale Jones final pass was batted down harmlessly at the goal line and Riordan survived with a narrow win in the City Archbishop Riordan players celebrate after their - win at home in San Francisco over Pittsburg on Saturday Sept Christian Babcock Bay Area News Group Our mentality was We just have to keep pushing disclosed Riordan running back Adonyae Brown who ran for three touchdowns including a -yard sum on the second play of the event The match s not over till it s over till there s zero seconds on the clock The Crusaders - certainly tested that theory on Saturday afternoon Brown s long rushing TD kicked off a prolific first half for Riordan once that saw it take a - lead on Michael Mitchell Jr s quick slant pass to Judge Nash who outraced Pittsburg s defense for a -yard count Nash came through again with a -yard TD catch on the first play of the second quarter giving Riordan quite the cushion to lean on early A lot of the things that happened a lot of it was mental errors or physical errors Pitt coach Charlie Ramirez noted For an inexperienced company that s how you end up with that type of first half Pittsburg varsity football head coach Charlie Ramirez shown in a file photo watches his crew play during the Pittsburg Football Jamboree held at Pittsburg High School in Pittsburg Calif on Friday Aug Jose Carlos Fajardo Bay Area News Group Pittsburg tried its hardest to bring back the ghosts of last season when St Ignatius surmounted a - deficit to beat Riordan in the Sunset District Pitt first cut into the deficit when RJ Mosley snagged a one-handed -yard catch in the corner of the end zone to make it - Then just before the half Siotame Finau ran in a -yard TD that was set up by a -yard screen catch-and-run by Mosley Riordan exposed one more sum before the break to keep Pitt at bay With seconds remaining Mitchell revealed Kyle Welch for a -yard touchdown catch doubling the deficit and giving the Crusaders certain breathing room at the half They re scared of our vertical competition Brown stated of the Pirates Adonyae Brown of Riordan shown in a file photo is congratulated by teammates Ozzy Wadsworth and Wesley Winn Jr of Riordan after scoring a touchdown in the third quarter against Los Gatos during a CCS Division I semifinal at Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco Calif on Nov Douglas Zimmerman for the Bay Area News Group But Pitt brought its passing tournament too Early in the third quarter the Pirates responded with another long screen pass this time a -yard number by Mosley Then Brown got back in gear to keep Riordan in front Touching the ball on four of the Crusaders final five plays of the drive Brown gained hard-fought yards and punctuated the sequence with a -yard TD run to put Riordan up - It threatened them because they were light in the box Brown revealed of the Crusaders rushing attack So I had to show them our run battle as well Brown pushed the lead back to with a personal -yard drive in the fourth quarter gaining all yards on three consecutive carries as Riordan punched in a -yard TD Adonyae Brown of Riordan shown in a file photo scores a touchdown in the first quarter against Los Gatos during a CCS Division I semifinal at Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco Calif on Nov Douglas Zimmerman for the Bay Area News Group Related Articles High school football in pictures Our staff s best photos of Week Bay Area high school football roundup Best of Week action Domination Menlo School silences Branham with a defensive gem Campolindo edges Vanden as Zach Tabibian kicks late winning field goal Overfelt holds off Saratoga in a competition that goes utterly off script Pitt still wouldn t give in Kenneth Ward ran the ensuing kickoff back yards for a sum then caught a -yard TD pass from Jones to make it - Riordan with three minutes to play The Pirates forced a punt on their next defensive series and got the ball back with remaining Jones got Pitt down to the Riordan -yard line but the Pirates couldn t make one final play to send the challenge to overtime That level of perseverance presented itself in the second half Ramirez stated That s two weeks in a row that we saw that It s great to see That s what we re hanging our hat on Subscribe to our Bay Area Preps HQ newsletter for all our Bay Area high school sports coverage including challenge analysis scores and everything you want to know about your Bay Area high school teams