SOUTHERN SECTION FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Paso Robles 43, Inglewood 40--Junior Brandon Thomas threw three touchdown passes to Jason Holmes and ran for a fourth score as the Bearcats defeated the Sentinels at El Camino College, to win their third consecutive Division X championship.

Adam Martinez ran for 111 yards and two touchdowns in 22 carries and Thomas completed nine of 15 passes for 179 yards as second-seeded Paso Robles (13-1) spoiled top-seeded Inglewood’s first appearance in a final since 1933.

Paso Robles took the lead for good on Martinez’s one-yard run midway through the second quarter. The Bearcats increased their lead to 29-20 just 27 seconds before halftime on Thomas’ 29-yard touchdown pass to Holmes and Martinez’s two-point conversion run, two plays after Matt Monteiro intercepted Brandon Grant’s pass and returned it to the Inglewood 43.

The Sentinels (13-1) cut the deficit to 43-40 on Lavell Lemon’s one-yard run with 2:01 left, but Curtis Nelson recovered the onside kick and Paso Robles ran out the clock.

Lamar Ferguson ran for 216 yards in 11 carries, including a 71-yard first-quarter touchdown for Inglewood. The Sentinels ran for 408 yards, giving them 7,308 for the season, surpassing San Diego Morse’s previous single-season state record of 6,940 set in 1990.