Steverson’s defensive heroics help complete Bears’ perfect CCC run

Merced High senior star Averie Steverson can impact a flag football game in many ways. Steverson is one of the top receivers in the state with over 2,000 receiving yards and 45 touchdowns this season. 

 

On Wednesday night she came up with the big plays on defense, intercepting two passes in the second half, including a pick-six to help the Bears rally in the second half to defeat Buhach Colony 34-25 to finish off a perfect 10-0 run to back-to-back Central California Conference championships.

 

“Averie has been such a force on defense for us she barely comes off the field,” said Merced coach Victor Nazario, whose team improved to 21-2 overall. “Her speed, size and ability to read the ball as a safety makes such an impact during the games. She has 19 interceptions on the year and they seem to happen right when we need them.”

 

Steverson leads the Sac-Joaquin Section with 45 touchdown catches and is second in the section with 2,104 receiving yards. Her 19 interceptions rank seventh in the section, showing she’s one of the top all-around players in the region. 

 

The interceptions came at a crucial time for the Bears as Buhach Colony (15-5, 6-3 CCC) had built a 25-14 lead early in the third quarter. Thunder quarterback Lesli Gutierrez had hurt the Bears with her legs, rushing for 140 yards and touchdown runs of 65 and 25 yards. 

 

Merced answered with a scoring drive that was capped off with Bears quarterback Antonia Lejarde pitching the ball to Steverson near the sideline and Steverson able to score on a short run that cut the Thunder lead to 25-22 on the final play of the third quarter.

 

Steverson then intercepted a pass to set up the Bears offense in Buhach Colony territory. Lejarde was able to score on a 5-yard run that gave Merced a 28-25 lead with 7:30 left in the game.

 

Steverson then came up with her second interception as she was able to haul in a deflected pass and race 25 yards for a touchdown to give Merced a 34-25 lead with 5:09 left in the game. 

 

“Honestly, the ball was deflected and it was just sitting on our linebacker's back, and I was right there,” Steverson said. “We were both right there to make the play, and then coincidentally, it was just on her back, so I was just able to take it off her back and make a run for it.”

 

Lejarde threw for 202 yards and two touchdowns and also added the rushing score. The senior quarterback is at or near the top of the section in just about every passing category. Amachi Turner had five catches for 48 yards, including a touchdown. 

 

It was the second consecutive game where Merced had to dig deep to overcome a second-half deficit. “I think just knowing all that we had to lose for this game,”Steverson said. “We knew we were playing for home field advantage during the playoffs. In the back of our minds we knew it's either playing at home or going on the road, and just potentially losing that momentum, so we knew we had something to play for.”

 

 Buhach Colony will finish up the regular season at El Capitan on Thursday. The Thunder are currently ranked No. 3 in the Division III in the Sac-Joaquin Section by MaxPreps. Merced is ranked No. 2 in Division II behind Granite Bay (16-1) and will open the playoffs on Oct. 28 as they begin their bid for back-to-back section championships.

 

“When we take the field in the playoffs we just need to play our game,” Nazario said. “Like we talked about last night after the game, we aren't asking the girls to do anything extraordinary. We just need them to make the catches and pull the flags. We are blessed to have a team full of talent from the starters to the girls that sub into the game we just need to execute and start off fast!”

Atwater 32, Golden Valley 26 – Falcons senior quarterback Kaylee Gunnin threw for 234 yards and three touchdowns and added two rushing touchdowns to lead Atwater to a victory over the Cougars. 

 

Atwater sophomore Makayla Ybarra caught seven passes for 125 yards Gabriella Garcia finished with 63 yards receiving and two touchdowns for the Falcons, who closed the regular season winning five of their last six games to finish with a 14-10 record overall and 6-4 in the CCC.

 

Los Banos 38, El Capitan 26 – Kaylee Fuentes threw five touchdowns as the Tigers defeated the Gauchos in a shootout. Siena Freitas caught six passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns for the Tigers.

 

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