Notes about this week’s San Diego Section finalists. Webmaster and researcher Henrik Jonson contributed much of the information:
DIVISION I
1 Mission Hills (9-3) vs. 3 Mater Dei (8-4), tonight, 7:30 p.m., Southwestern College.
The Grizzlies advanced from the semifinals with a 28-21 win over No. 5 El Camino.
Mater Dei defeated No. 2 Cathedral, 14-9.
Chris Hauser is the only coach in the 19-year history of Mission Hills. Including four seasons as coach at Vista, Hauser has an all-time record of 189-81-2 for a .699 won-loss percentage.
The Avocado League runners-up Grizzlies are playing in their sixth championship game and have a 1-4 record.
Mission Hills defeated Oceanside, 36-14, for the section championship in 2013 and lost to Bakersfield, 35-28, in the Southern California playoffs.
Mission Hills’ first season was 2004. The Grizzlies were 10-2 in 2007, 10-3 in ’10, 10-3 in ’12, 12-2 in ’13, 11-1 in ’15, 12-1 in ’17, and 5-0 in ’20, plus five seasons of 9-3.
The Grizzlies have met Mater Dei twice. The Crusaders won, 41-14, in 2016 and the Grizzlies won, 56-7, in ’17.
Mission Hills has an all-time record of 155 wins, 66 losses, and 2 ties for a .700 won-loss percentage.
The Grizzlies have 16 had winning seasons of 19.
–John Joyner is in his 14th season as the head coach at Mater Dei with a record of 95-65 for a won-loss percentage of .594.
–The Metro Mesa League champions have won eight in a row after four defeats.
–Mater Dei is playing its 14th section championship game and has a 9-4 record.
–The Crusaders defeated Reedley Immanuel of the Central Section, 56-21, for the state V-AA championship in 2015. They defeated Modesto Central Catholic of the Sac-Joaquin Section, 34-25, for the state II-AA title in 2021.
–The Crusaders lost to Lancaster Paraclete of the Southern Section, 34-18, in the state III-AA playoffs in 2016.
–Mater Dei was 11-2 in 1998, 11-2 in ’99, 12-1 in 2001, 13-0 in ‘02, 13-0 in ’03, 14-1 in ’15, 12-2 in ’16, and 14-0 in ’21.
–Mater Dei’s first season was 1960. The Crusaders have an all-time record of 328 wins, 309 defeats, and 8 ties for a won-loss percentage of .515.
The Crusaders have had 29 winning seasons of 62.
Calpreps.com assigns Mission Hills a 41.9 power rating and Mater Dei 41.7.
Mater Dei ranks 34th in the state by Cal-Hi Sports and the Grizzlies 48th.
Mater Dei is fourth in the San Diego Section and Mission Hills fifth, according to Max Preps.
The pick: Mater Dei.
D-II
1 Granite Hills (10-2) vs. 3 Ramona (8-4), Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Escondido High.
Granite Hills won in the semifinals, 45-8, over No. 5 Mira Mesa.
Ramona topped 2 El Centro Central Union, 19-7.
Kellan Cobbs is in his 11th season as coach the Eagles with a record of 78-47.
The Eagles, Grossmont Hills champions, have an 0-2 record in San Diego Section championship games, losing, 25-14, to Oceanside in 1975 and 28-7 to Morse in 1979.
The schools are 24 miles apart and in close proximity to California Highway 67 but they’ve met only once, the Eagles defeating Ramona, 27-14 in the 2017 D-II playoffs.
Granite Hills’ first season was 1960. The Eagles have an all-time record of 345 victories, 291 losses, and 6 ties for a .542 won-loss percentage.
Granite Hills was 11-2 in 1975, 10-1 in ’76, 10-1 in ’77, 10-1 in ’79, 11-1 in ’85, 9-2 in ’15, 10-3 in ‘17, 10-2 in ‘18, and 5-1 in ’20.
The Eagles have had 33 winning seasons of 63.
Granite Hills gets a 37.3 rating by Calpreps.com and Ramona 23.1.
The Eagles are not among Cal-Hi Sports top 50 in the state but are one of the “on the bubble” teams.
Max Preps ranks Granite Hills sixth in the San Diego Section and Ramona 14th.
–Damon Baldwin is in his 18th season as head coach for the Bulldogs, winners of the Valley League.
–Baldwin has a 123-77-1 record for a won-loss percentage of .614.
–The Bulldogs have been in 10 section championship games and have a 5-4-1 record.
–Ramona defeated Needles, 26-21, in 1958 and Rialto Eisenhower, 14-7, in 1959 for Southern Section small schools championships. They are 0-3 in San Diego Section championship games.
–Ramona opened in 1893 but did not field a football team until 1938. The Bulldogs have an all-time record of 358 wins, 426 losses, and 13 ties for a .457 won-loss percentage.
The Bulldogs were 7-0 in 1954, 8-1 in ’55, 7-1 in ’57, 11-0 in ’58, 12-0 in ’59, 9-2 in 2001, 10-2 in ’13, and 12-1 in ’17.
The Bulldogs have 36 winning seasons of 84.
The Pick: Ramona.
