Merced High junior Averie Steverson has played volleyball since she was little. When the Central California Conference moved flag football games to the same night as volleyball matches last year, Steverson had to pick a sport and chose volleyball. This year, Steverson opted to play flag football instead. It was a tough choice, but Steverson is happy she made it.

 

“Selfishly, I left a sport I played my whole life in volleyball,” Steverson said. “I had to do what was best for me. It was tough leaving my teammates and my girls.” Steverson has been a game-changer at receiver and safety for the Bears, and will help lead Merced into the Sac-Joaquin Section Division II championship game on Saturday against No. 3 Ponedrosa at 3 p.m. at Cosumnes River College.

 

“She's a difference maker,” said Merced head coach Vic Nazario, whose team is the top seed with a 24-4 record. “I think everybody knows that, especially every team we’ve played this season. She's a great athlete. She's able to play both sides of the ball and she does a great job of going up and getting the ball.”

 

Steverson has hauled in 151 catches for 2,227 receiving yards and 31 touchdowns this season. She’s seventh in the state and 10th in the nation in receiving yards and her 31 touchdowns are tied for second in the Sac-Joaquin Section.

 

What makes the Bears offense so explosive is Steverson is just one weapon opposing teams have to worry about. Quarterback Antonia Lejarde has thrown for 6,680 yards and 103 touchdowns. Lejarde is fifth in the state in passing yards and ranked No. 2 in the section. Lejarde has also rushed for 1,016 yards and another 21 scores. “I think she’s the best quarterback in our league,” Steverson said. “You couldn’t ask for more.”

 

Lejarde has weapons like sophomore receiver Amachi Turner, who has 105 catches for 1,297 yards and 15 touchdowns and senior Ryann Perez, who has racked up 78 receptions for 1,198 yards and 21 touchdowns. “It feels great to know I have all these stud receivers who can catch the ball and know what to do when I get lost,” Lejarde said.

 

The Bears high-powered offense is averaging just under 33 points per game. Having other weapons like Turner and Perez keep opposing defenses from focusing in on stopping Steverson. “That's really what we have, Amachi is a great receiver and has the height.” Nazario said. “Ryan Perez is really fast. Amiya (Brown) and Bree (Pimentel) have great hands. It opens up the door for everybody and Antonia can keep throwing the ball to everybody.”

 

The Bears can balance their potent offense with a defense that is surrendering just 11.5 points per game. Merced just held an Atwater offense that scored 99 points in its first two playoff games to seven points in the Bears’ 13-7 semifinal win on Wednesday.

 

Nazario says the coaching staff hasn’t been able to find much film on Ponderosa. The Bruins (18-6) advanced to the championship game with a 26-6 win over Lodi in the first round, a 26-20 overtime win over El Capitan in the second round and a 6-0 win over Vista Del Lago in the semifinals. Ponderosa averages 17.5 points per game, but the Bruins defense is only give up less than 10 points per game. 

 

The Bears are focused on finishing their quest to bring home a section championship. “It feels good,” Lejarde said. “This is a goal we’ve been working toward since the beginning of the season. Now we have to go out and execute.”

Shawn Jansen is the MUHSD Program Manager Digital Media. He can be reached at Sjansen@muhsd.org.