Cougars fight to finish in D2 final

By Ramon Scott
Updated: November 29, 2025

Steele Canyon's Gavin Caha carries on Thursday. / Vic Marano

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2025 EAST COUNTY PREP FOOTBALL

SAN DIEGO CIF DIVISION 2 CHAMPIONSHIP

SANTA FE CHRISTIAN 44, STEELE CANYON 41

By EastCountySports.com

CHULA VISTA — Steele Canyon didn’t back down from the only undefeated team in San Diego County. Not when it fell behind by two scores early. Not when Santa Fe Christian threatened to pull away before halftime. Not when the Eagles opened the third quarter with yet another explosive strike.

And not even when the Cougars trailed 37–20 late in the third quarter of Friday night’s San Diego CIF Division II championship game at Southwestern College’s DeVore Stadium.

Instead, Steele Canyon fought until the final kneel-down of a wild 44–41 thriller — a heavyweight battle played at full throttle — before top-seeded Santa Fe Christian improved on their perfect 13–0 season thus far.

The Cougars, seeded No. 2, finished 9–4 despite a loss that still reasserted the program’s place among the county’s upper tier.

But on this night, their comeback bid ran out of time.

Santa Fe Christian struck first on an 8-yard touchdown pass from standout junior QB Dax Labrum to Chase Woolley, part of a five-TD night for Labrum, whose quarterback coach just happens to be NFL legend Drew Brees.

Steele Canyon answered immediately.

Junior quarterback Gavin Caha hit senior receiver Jacob Henton in stride for an 80-yard bomb, tying the game 7–7 and firing up the Cougar sideline.

Two SFC field goals sandwiched around one of the night’s biggest moments — senior star Nico Jara’s 99-yard kickoff return, a weaving, blistering sprint that briefly put the Cougars ahead 14–13. It was only fitting that even in a loss, the Cougar legend turned in one of his patented big plays on the return game.

But the Eagles surged into halftime with a 30–14 lead after two more Labrum TD passes and another field goal from Bradan Scott, who drilled kicks from 21, 37, and 43 yards on the night.

Down 16 at halftime, Steele Canyon still had plans for a comeback.

SFC jumped ahead 37–20 midway through the third on a 51-yard shot from Labrum to Woolley. But again the Cougars counterpunched.

Caha found Josiah Stocker for a 38-yard score, part of Stocker’s 8-catch, 137-yard night. After the defense forced a stop, Caha capped a determined drive with a 3-yard keeper, cutting the deficit to 37–34.

Labrum’s fifth touchdown — a 3-yard strike to Jairus Bolden — restored SFC’s lead to 44–34 with 7:49 remaining.

Senior Abel Lopez, the Cougars’ goal-line hammer, barreled in from 3 yards out with 4:30 left to pull within 44–41. Lopez scored two rushing touchdowns on the night as part of the team’s short-yardage push.

Trailing by only a field goal, the Cougars were poised for one more chance — until a critical sequence flipped field position.

SFC’s Cruz Campbell returned the kickoff 16 yards, and a 15-yard roughing penalty tacked on precious yards. The Eagles then churned out three first downs as Steele Canyon exhausted its timeouts, setting up Labrum to simply kneel out the final minute.

Caha turned in one of his best performances of the year, finishing 15-for-23 for 272 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 43 yards and a score. Henton added 96 yards on three receptions, including the 80-yard TD.

But Steele Canyon struggled to find consistent running lanes, finishing with just 68 rushing yards against an SFC front that registered 6 1/2 sacks on the night.

SFC countered with balance: 268 passing yards, 123 rushing yards, and major contributions from Woolley (8-119-2), Campbell (93 receiving, 144 all-purpose), and return man AJ Haynes, who added 111 kickoff-return yards.

The loss stings — a mere three points separating the Cougars from a CIF championship — but Steele Canyon’s 2025 season stands as a major reaffirmation of the program’s strength.

After a 1–4 finish in the brutally competitive Grossmont Hills League, the Cougars regrouped, powered through the postseason, and knocked off multiple high-quality opponents to reach the Division II title game.

On Friday, they went toe-to-toe with an unbeaten, veteran-laden No. 1 seed — and came within a single possession of dethroning them.

The Cougars may not be bringing home the trophy, but they leave Southwestern College knowing this: Steele Canyon football is fully back among the county’s strongest programs, and their push to reclaim championship hardware is already underway.