Udvarhelyi, Sneddon buoy first-ever CIF win for Sultans

By Nick Pellegrino
Updated: October 28, 2026

File photo by Vic Marano in Instagrtam

Sultans quarterback Cameron Udvarhelyi / File photo by Vic Marano on Instagram

2026 EAST COUNTY PREP FLAG FOOTBALL
CIFSDS Championships

EastCountySports.com

Division 4

Santana 35, Escondido 13

SANTEE — The Santana Sultans, who felt deserving of at least a three-way share of the Grossmont Valley League championship before finishing one game behind El Cajon Valley and West Hills, partially vindicated themselves by routing Escondido, 35-13, at Santee Community Stadium.

Sultans senior quarterback Cameron Udvarhelyi passed for a season-high 372 yards and four touchdowns, leading Santana to the first postseason victory in program history.

Udvarhelyi’s career high remains the 415 yards and six touchdowns she recorded against Olympian as a junior in 2025.

Senior Gabby Sneddon posted multiple touchdown receptions for the second time this season. Sneddon caught two of Udvarhelyi’s scoring passes, including a 50-yarder. Her career high is three touchdown receptions, established against Monte Vista.

Sneddon finished with nine receptions for 166 yards. She also fueled the Santana defense with eight flag pulls, another season high, bettering her previous mark of seven.

Junior Luna Biggs also hauled in a touchdown pass.

Santana (10-9 overall) guaranteed itself at least a non-losing final record with the victory. The Sultans next meet top-seeded Rancho Buena Vista in southwest Vista on Thursday.

The Longhorns (8-8) finished fifth in the North County Conference’s Valley League, one game behind Rancho Bernardo.

Earlier this season, RBV nipped Santana, 25-18, on a late touchdown, making the Sultans’ quarterfinal assignment appear quite winnable.

Division 1

Ramona 14, Hilltop 13

RAMONA — Ramona sophomore Annabelle Bash recorded a first-quarter safety before the Bulldogs rallied for two fourth-quarter touchdowns to nip visiting Hilltop, 14-13, in Tuesday’s Division 1 Round of 16 contest.

The matchup between the Nos. 8 and 9 seeds saw Bash’s safety open the scoring, but the Lancers answered with all 13 of their points during the second quarter while their defense kept Ramona out of the end zone.

The Bulldogs’ offense finally responded during the fourth quarter behind quarterback Elisa Gaines.

Unable to find an open receiver, Gaines burned the Hilltop defense with a pair of touchdown runs, including the deciding score during the final minutes.

Before her two-touchdown performance, Gaines had rushed for only one score all season.

Bash also paced the Bulldogs’ defense with 13 flag pulls. No other Ramona defender recorded more than eight.

Reese Blakey registered her 14th interception of the season, while Brooklyn Roed added her fifth. All five of Roed’s interceptions this season have come in games in which Blakey also recorded a theft.

Ramona (14-6) established a school record for victories in a season. The Bulldogs next travel to Carmel Highlands to meet top-seeded Cathedral Catholic.

The teams have already met this season, with Ramona claiming a 12-6 road victory on Aug. 17.

Division 2

Mt. Carmel 20, Steele Canyon 14

RANCHO PEÑASQUITOS — Steele Canyon stayed close with seventh-seeded Mt. Carmel throughout, but a pair of multiple-overtime contests during the final week of the regular season may have contributed to the Cougars’ downfall in this CIFSDS Division 2 playoff opener at Sundevil Stadium.

Steele Canyon, the No. 10 seed, completed its season at 10-11 overall, posting a 9-2 record against teams with losing records but going 1-9 against opponents that finished above .500.

The difference was a 42-yard touchdown pass from Mt. Carmel quarterback Ava Christman to receiver Hannah Weber. Both players are sophomores.

Christman passed for 196 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. She also rushed for a score.

Mt. Carmel (13-7) next heads to nearby Scripps Ranch for Thursday’s quarterfinal round.

— Nick Pellegrino