Clovis North sacks JSerra Catholic in big intersectional statement win

CLOVIS, CALIFORNIA — The JSerra Catholic Lions football team traveled nearly 300 miles Friday to take on the Central Section's top-ranked team, the Clovis North Broncos. 

It probably felt like a much longer trip back home.  

The Broncos (5-0) used a 99-yard scoring drive, two rushing touchdowns and a 49-yard TD bomb from Mario Cosma to Vincent Cordoba to knock off the Trinity League and Southern Section power, 23-7. 

It was a statement win for the Broncos and the Central Section. They came in No. 24 in the SBLive Sports California Power 25 rankings. JSerra entered No. 10. 

The Broncos forced three turnovers, including two interceptions — both by Andrew Chavez — against highly-regarded quarterback Michael Tollefson. The Broncos also forced a fumble on a sack. 

On the offensive end, Jackson Cinfel led the ground game with 23 carries for 185 yards and one touchdown to secure an impressive win. 

It even impressed Clovis North coach Mike Jacot. 

“We are pretty good,” he said. “We have been playing well, our guys believe in each other, and we believed, and the scoreboard speaks for itself. I am proud of our guys and that they just keep doing their thing and hopefully we can build a program our community is proud of.”

A bad punt snap, led by to a 19-yard touchdown run by Cinfel to give Clovis North a 7-0 lead with 58 seconds left in the first quarter. 

The Broncos increased it to 14-0, driving 99-yards, capped by a 49-yard pass from Mario Cosma to Vincent Cordoba with 6:42 left in the half. 

Cinfel believes this win proves that Clovis North is one of the top teams in the section entering league play.

“It is a great win. This was team effort,” Cinfel said. “Everyone executed and we came into today’s game to execute and to win. When the defense plays how they did, it motivates our offense to get in the end zone. We are number one and we are going to stay number one.”

The stellar Clovis North defense kept JSerra shutout through the third quarter and McKay Madsen added a 25-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter to go up 20-0. Madsen finished with 83 yards rushing on eight carries.  

A 21-yard field by Ryan Kobzeff all but clinched it with five minutes left, making it 23-0. 

The Clovis North defense had an impressive night shutting down an offense that scored 45, 41, and 34 points in their last three games.

“We started off strong keeping them away from the end zone. Our guys played tough,” Chavez said. “This win is huge for us, we worked hard all week and we knew that we had a chance to compete with them and knew we could win this game.”

JSerra (3-2) finally got on the scoreboard with two minutes left, making it 23-7. 

The Lions have a bye next week then plays Orange Lutheran on September 29. That's the day Clovis North next plays in another mega matchup against Clovis East High School to open Tri-River League play. 

Clovis East is ranked No. 3 in the latest SBLive Central Section rankings.

Chavez said the Broncos are looking forward to starting league play and hope to continue their success and their physical play.

“We are a physical team, we like to hit, and we are not scared of no one,” Chavez said. “We are ready, we are ready for track. We are not going to act like we are better, we are still going to play true to our keys and we will be ready.”

(All photos by Bobby Medellin)

Pregame: Fantastic intersectional battle between JSerra Catholic, the No. 7 team in the Southern Section, travels 275 miles Northeast to battle the Broncos, the top-ranked team in the Central Section. Both teams are ranked in the state SBLive Top 25, JSerra at No. 10 and Clovis North at No. 24. The Broncos are one of the top running teams in the state, averaging more than 300 yards per game (1,216 overall), led by junior Jackson Cinfel (544 yards, seven TDs). The team averages 10.5 yards per carry. JSerra boasts one of the top junior QBs in the state in Arizona State commit Michael Tollefson, who has 23 offers. The 6-1, 195-pounder has thrown for 436 yards and two touchdowns and run for 168 more and four scores.