FINAL: Granite Hills Erases 14-Point Deficit, Knocks Off Lincoln in CIF San Diego Section D1 Football Championship

Top-seeded Lincoln jumped out to an early deficit, but Granite Hills stormed back and played solid defense in the second half to claim its third title in as many years

Granite Hills erased an early 14-0 deficit and stormed back in the second half to knock off top-seeded Lincoln 41-29 to win the CIF San Diego Section Division I championship at Southwestern College on Saturday night. / Steve Sidell

History will be on the line when the top-seeded Lincoln Hornets and second-seeded Granite City Eagles square off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday night at Southwestern College.

The CIF San Diego Section Division I championship will be on the line, of course, but the underdog Eagles will be chasing their fifth consecutive title and the Hornets will be chasing some revenge.

When these teams squared off in the 2023 Open Division final, Granite Hills scored on the final play of the game at Snapdragon Stadium to pull out a dramatic 27-26 victory. Some of these same players saw action in that game and it will remain fresh in their minds.

Lincoln enters with a 10-2 mark this season and a perfect 3-0 record on the road, while Granite Hills sports a 9-3 mark with all three losses coming on the road.

Of course, it's a new year. Still, there's no way to ignore the Eagles' championship pedigree and experience winning these types of games. During their run they have done a little bit of everything; claiming championships in Open Division, Division I and Division II.

Lincoln, meanwhile, has a championship pedigree of its own. The Hornets went 12-2 last season and beat Pittsburg 28-26 to claim the Division 1-AA title.

All signs point to another nail-biter Saturday night.

Winners of six straight, Granite Hills brings a prolific offense led by junior quarterback Zachary Benitez, who has passed for 3,365 yards, 35 touchdowns and 8 interceptions while completing 260 of 382 attempts. Benitez doesn't run a lot but he's been effective when he does, rushing for 161 yards and 4 TDs.

Benitez will look to connect with his favorite target, senior wide receiver Noah Walker, who has 58 receptions for 1,042 yards and 12 TDs. Junior running back Davion Williams has handled most of the ground attack, rushing for 451 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 92 carries.

Lincoln counters with a two-headed monster at quarterback, with senior quarterback Kainan Manna completing 50 of 81 passes for 1,092 yards, 17 touchdowns and 2 interceptions in 11 games, while junior Jordan Roa has completed 75 of 107 passes for 967 yards, 11 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.

The Hornets also have a two-headed monster in the backfield with a pair of senior running backs, as Junior Curtis leads the team with 1,582 yards and 20 touchdowns on 158 carries while Rashad Robinson has amassed 1,012 yards and 17 touchdowns on 127 carries.

Be sure to follow this page and refresh often once the game begins for live scoring, highlights and updates in the space below as they happen.

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Live Updates

	1Q	2Q	3Q	4Q	Final
Granite Hills	7	13	13	7	41
Lincoln	14	7	8	0	29

1st Quarter

Granite Hills won the toss and chose to defer. Lincoln received the opening kickoff and started the game's opening drive at its own 20 following a touchback.

TOUCHDOWN! On the game's first play the Hornets went play-action and Dareyen Bridges hauled in an 80-yard strike from Kainan Manna for the game's first points. Lincoln took a 7-0 lead with 11:48 left in the first quarter.

BIG RETURN! Granite Hills responded to the touchdown with a huge return by Parker Johnson to the Lincoln 35.

INTERCEPTION! On Granite Hills' first play, Lincoln's Cammeron Purnell picked off a pass. A penalty after the play pushed the Hornets back to their own 27 where they began their second possession. It was a huge start for the Hornets.

KEY PENALTY! Manna threw another long pass for a touchdown to Courtney Miller-Thompson, but an ineligible man downfield wiped out the TD.

TOUCHDOWN! With 9:43 left in the first Lincoln running back Rashad Robinson sprinted free for a 32-yard touchdown run. Just like that, Lincoln blitzed Granite Hills for a 14-0 lead. Granite Hills' first two drives went for 80 and 74 yards.

TOUCHDOWN! Granite Hills responded as Zhedan Smith scored on a 10-yard pass from Zachary Benitez with 4:57 left in the first quarter to cut its deficit in half, 14-7.

SACK! A bad snap over Manna's head resulted in a big sack by Granit Hills' Parker Johnson, his first of the season, to set up a third-and-15 for Lincoln at the Granite Hills 25.

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! Granite Hills came up with a big defensive stop. Lincoln was running tempo on offense and ripping off chunks of yards before the defense stiffened up and got a stop at its own 26 with 3:02 left to take back possession.

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! Granite Hills moved the ball to the Lincoln 34 and stalled out. Lincoln regained possession at the 35 with 1:32 left in the first.

The first quarter ended with Lincoln driving in Granite Hills territory at the 33.

End 1: Lincoln 14, Granite Hills 7

2nd Quarter

SACK! On third down Granite Hills got its second sack of the game, as Wyatt MacLeod took down Manna at the Granite Hills 22.

MISSED FIELD GOAL! Lincoln attempted a 41-yard field goal, but the kick was wide left. Granite Hills got the ball back at its own 20 with 9:24 left in the half.

BIG PLAYS! Zhedan Smith caught a swing pass and ran 26 yards down to the Lincoln 37. Two plays later Gage Spalding broke a big run down to the 12.

TOUCHDOWN! Granite Hills came all the way back to erase the 14-0 deficit when Gage Spalding plunged in on a 1-yard run with 5:28 left in the half to tie the game 14-14.

TOUCHDOWN! Lincoln quickly responded as Junior Curtis busted free on a 53-yard touchdown run with 5:05 left to put the Hornets back in front, 21-14.

TOUCHDOWN! On third-and-8, Granite Hills quarterback Zachary Benitez hit senior wide receiver Noah Walker on a quick slant and, like a blur, he outran three defenders for a 65-yard touchdown. The PAT kick was no good, allowing Lincoln to maintain a 21-20 lead with 4:35 left in the half.

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! Granite Hills' defense got another big stop at its own 34 with 1:40 left in the half to turn the ball over.

PUNT! Granite Hills stalled out near midfield and punted it back to Lincoln's 10 with 51 seconds left in the half.

HALFTIME: Lincoln 21, Granite Hills 20

3rd Quarter

Granite Hills opened the second half with the ball at it own 37.

On the first play of the second half, Granite Hills got a pass play to receiver Noah Walker down to the 34 with a facemask penalty on the play advancing the ball to the Lincoln 19.

TOUCHDOWN! Zachary Benitez hit Noah Walker, who was left wide open on a quick slant, for an 8-yard touchdown pass on the third play of the half to cap a 63-yard drive with 10:56 left in the third to give the Eagles their first lead of the game. A 2-point conversion attempt failed. Granite Hills 26, Lincoln 21.

TOUCHDOWN! Rashad Robinson scored on a 1-yard run to give Lincoln the lead back with 8:24 left in the third. A conversion pass from Manna to Courtney Miller-Thompson made it 29-26.

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! A big play behind the line of scrimmage by Lincoln defender Jamari Sherrell on a fourth-and-3 run by the Eagles gave the ball back to the Hornets' offense with 6:31 left in the third at the Lincoln 47.

SACK! Wyatt MacLeod got his second sack of the night and third of the year, taking down Manna at the Eagles' 41 to set up third-and-20 for the Hornets.

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! Granite Hills got a big stop with 3:26 left in the third quarter to get the ball back at its own 31.

BIG PLAY! A pass from Zachary Benitez to Zhedan Smith set up a first down for Granite Hills at the Lincoln 33.

TOUCHDOWN! For the second time in the quarter and third time in the game, Benitez hit Noah Walker on a seam route that went for 31 yards to cap a 69-yard drive. Granite Hills took the lead back, 33-29, with 1:34 left in the third.

After converting a fourth-and-3 deep in its own territory, the third quarter ended with Lincoln driving with second-and-5 at the Granite Hills 49.

End 3: Granite Hills 33, Lincoln 29

4th Quarter

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! Following a false start, Lincoln attempted to go for it on fourth-and-8 at the Granite Hills 42 with 9:45 left in the game, but the pass was dropped. Granite Hills started with great field position and a chance to build on its lead.

MISSED FIELD GOAL! Granite Hills missed a 32-yard field goal with 4:22 left to give the ball back to Lincoln at its own 20. The Eagles lined up to go for it on fourth-and-3, but a false start pushed them back and forced the field goal attempt.

TURNOVER ON DOWNS! Lincoln failed to move the ball. An incomplete pass on fourth down gave the ball back to Granite Hills at the Lincoln 20 with 3:33 to go.

With 1:33 left, Granite Hills called a timeout with the ball at the 1-yard line facing second-and-goal.

TOUCHDOWN! Gage Spalding scored his second touchdown of the game, plunging in on a 1-yard run with 1:30 left. Tristan Diaz caught a conversion pass to extend the Eagles' lead to 41-29.

SACK! Wyatt MacLeod got his third sack of the game, and the team's fifth, on the final play of the game.

Final: Granite Hills 41, Lincoln 29

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