Serra blanks Bellarmine in Central Coast Section Division I football semifinals

Two early fumbles on Bellarmine’s first two possessions set the stage for the rout.

“We turned the ball over after we made some big plays, and then there were some big plays that maybe should have been bigger,” Bellarmine head coach Jalal Beauchman said. “If you miss opportunities against a good team like this, it’s going to be tough to compete.”

The Padres — who went 0 for 5 on third-down conversions in the first half — went nowhere on their first two possessions. But Serra kept its feet under them and kept punching, and thanks largely to its special teams quickly had Bellarmine backpedaling.

“That’s a testament to Coach Ron Ortiz, our special teams coordinator, and kind of identifying some things we thought we could exploit,” Serra head coach Patrick Walsh said. “In the playoffs, it doesn’t really matter how it gets done. There’s a different star all the time.”

A fourth-down pass completion from Alexander Atkins to Jabari Mann off a fake field goal on Serra’s first scoring drive was a stunning left cross. Two plays later, quarterback Dom Lampkin scored on a quarterback sneak ala Tom Brady for Serra’s first score.

But the devastating roundhouse came a minute later when Serra senior Ryan Mahe blocked a punt and Mann scooped it up to score to give the Padres a 14-0 first-quarter lead.

“Here’s the beautiful thing about the playoffs, you never know who the star’s going to be,” Walsh said. “Bellarmine was doing a great job defensively and we had some great sparks from the special teams, from the execution of the fake field goal, then blocking a punt. That’s 14 points right there.”

Then the Serra defense went to work.

Senior defensive ends Mahe and K.C Clark performed a clinic in surrounding and collapsing the pocket on Bellarmine’s dynamic senior quarterback Wade Smith, who finished the day with 131 total yards — his lowest total since Bellarmine’s 41-7 loss to Serra in West Catholic Athletic League play Oct. 2.

Bellarmine suffered even more third-down misery than did Serra. The Bells were 0 of 5 on third-down tries in the first half and failed on their first nine third-down attempts of the day. Two third-down tries in the third quarter ended in sacks by Serra’s Mahe and Joseph Bey, respectively. Bellarmine achieved its first third-down conversion of the afternoon in the fourth quarter with the Padres leading 34-0.

“Today was a day we tackled better, we fit better,” Walsh said contrasting the performance to Serra’s 41-30 loss to St. Francis in the regular-season finale Nov. 6.

“The St. Francis game … we were exploited for a lot of things and our weaknesses, and we appreciate St. Francis for that,” he said. “I think, that’s part of the thing we are just trying to grow and get better each week. So, obviously, today with a shutout in a playoff game is absolutely fantastic.”

Senior kicker Leonardo Galindo booted a 40-yard field goal to send the Padres into the halftime locker room up 17-0. Running back Petelo Gi then scored twice within two minutes of each other in the third quarter, first on an 8-yard blast then — after an impressive 30-yard run to the 1, breaking five different tackles along the right sideline — Gi danced into the end zone on a 1-yard run.

Gi shouldered quite a workload, carrying 22 times for 162 yards and two touchdowns.

After a 37-yard field goal by Galindo made it 34-0 early in the fourth quarter, Serra put forth its most jubilant celebration of the day midway through the fourth quarter. Third-string quarterback Maealiuaki Smith, a sophomore, aired out a 38-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Gomez for the first TD catch of senior’s varsity career.

Serra outgained Bellarmine 365-220 on the day.

“I think all these guys out here would say, we haven’t been that,” Walsh said. “There hasn’t been a complete game where we’ve said: ‘Oh, that’s Serra football.’ And that’s why we’ve been so disappointed this year as a coaching staff, and even as players. It’s: Where is it? Where is that love and spirit that makes Serra special and unique?”

When asked specifically about the play of Mahe and Clark off the defensive edge, Walsh kept the focus on the team concept with his response.

“That’s where it really comes in,” Walsh said. “If you really love your teammates, you don’t go in the wrong gap, you don’t fumble the ball. So, it’s all a microcosm of, I feel like today, for me, this team, this year, I feel like our team was born today.”

Serra now advances for a rematch with St. Francis in the CCS Division I championship game. Friday night’s kickoff at Westmont High School in Campbell is scheduled for 7 p.m.