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  • St. Margaret's Oscar Gomez heads for the end zone with...

    St. Margaret's Oscar Gomez heads for the end zone with a touchdown in the first half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High on Friday.

  • Fernando Delgado of St. Margaret's makes a catch in the...

    Fernando Delgado of St. Margaret's makes a catch in the first half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High. The Tartans improved to 15-0.

  • St. Margaret's Auston Locke heads for the end zone for...

    St. Margaret's Auston Locke heads for the end zone for his second touchdown of the first half during the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Oscar Gomez gets pulled down by Christian's Nate...

    St. Margaret's Oscar Gomez gets pulled down by Christian's Nate Cazares after a gain in the first half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Fernando Delgado goes into the end zone for...

    St. Margaret's Fernando Delgado goes into the end zone for a touchdown during the first half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High on Friday.

  • Christian's Brandon Hester, left, and St. Margaret's Nick Shanks both...

    Christian's Brandon Hester, left, and St. Margaret's Nick Shanks both miss catching the ball in the first half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Oscar Gomez (23) celebrates with Auston Locke, right,...

    St. Margaret's Oscar Gomez (23) celebrates with Auston Locke, right, after Locke scored a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage by St. Margarets in the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's players celebrate with their award after winning the...

    St. Margaret's players celebrate with their award after winning the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's celebrates with their trophy after winning the CIF...

    St. Margaret's celebrates with their trophy after winning the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Fernando Delgado pulls in a long reception in...

    St. Margaret's Fernando Delgado pulls in a long reception in front of Christian's Christian Yaotani in the second half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Nick Shanks catches this pass and runs for...

    St. Margaret's Nick Shanks catches this pass and runs for a 68 yard touchdown while Christian's Brandon Hester tries to defend in the second half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Auston Locke (25) takes off with an interception...

    St. Margaret's Auston Locke (25) takes off with an interception in the second half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • Christian's Joey Morones runs without his helmet but the play...

    Christian's Joey Morones runs without his helmet but the play was called dead once the officials saw what had happened in the second half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's head coach Stephen Barbee walks an injured player...

    St. Margaret's head coach Stephen Barbee walks an injured player off the field in the second half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

  • St. Margaret's Nick Shanks (2) celebrates his pick six with...

    St. Margaret's Nick Shanks (2) celebrates his pick six with his teammates in the second half of the CIF State Division IV regional final at Granite Hills High School on Friday.

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Dan Albano. Sports HS Reporter.

// MORE INFORMATION: Staff Mug Shot taken August 26, 2010 : by KATE LUCAS, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER.

EL CAJON – Another night of perfection put small-school St. Margaret’s back in the big show Friday.

Sophomore quarterback George Krantz threw four touchdowns and junior Nick Shanks intercepted two of five passes for the Tartans’ defense as they stayed undefeated with a 48-21 victory against Christian of El Cajon in the CIF Southern California Division IV regional at a soggy Granite Hills High.

The Tartans (15-0) not only advanced to the state bowl this coming Friday at StubHub Center in Carson, they snapped the longest active winning streak in the state and defeated a third consecutive undefeated team.

Christian (13-1) had won 20 consecutive games but it was the Tartans who flashed No. 1 signs in a wild postgame celebration.

“They hadn’t played the Tartans yet,” St. Margaret’s interim coach Stephen Barbee said. “To be able to play for a state title is awesome. It could not have happened to a better team. It’s a selfless team. It’s an incredible effort.”

St. Margaret’s will play Central Catholic of Modesto, a 35-14 winner against Capital Christian of Sacramento in the Northern regional, on Friday at 4 p.m.

The Tartans, who won a state title in 2008 with Coach Harry Welch, overwhelmed Christian with their balance in all three phases of the game.

Krantz passed for a career-high 367 yards on a night that Christian held 2,000-yard rusher Oscar Gomez to 22 yards on 10 carries.

Barbee said Krantz made Christian pay for stacking the line of scrimmage to stop Gomez.

“They were going to try to take away our run and we really felt with that man matchup (in the secondary) … our receivers were better than their defensive backs,” Barbee said. “We had mismatches all over the field.”

Shanks was the Tartans’ top playmaker, rushing for 98 yards, recording four receptions for 101 yards and grabbing two interceptions.

And his timing was perfect. After Christian trimmed the Tartans’ lead to 28-21 with 7:27 left in the third quarter and seemed to have the momentum for a rally, he caught a 68-yard TD, outjumping a defender at the 43 and racing to the end zone with 3:13 left in the quarter.

The score was set up an interception by Taylor Freitas on a fourth-down stand near the St. Margaret’s 11.

Less than a minute after his touchdown, Shanks returned an interception 54 yards for a touchdown as the Tartans opened a 42-21 lead with 2:38 left in the third.

“I just tried to do what I had to do,” Shanks said. “I was just playing football and it worked out.”

Christian quarterback David Todd Jeremiah had only been intercepted four times entering the game but the Tartans intercepted him five times, leading to 24 points.

“It’s all about the ‘we’ ,” Shanks said. “The coaching staff prepares us all week and we come into game knowing what we got to do and we play like brothers and no one can stop that.”

Charlie Beall closed out the third quarter with a booming 48-yard field goal that lifted St. Margaret’s to a 45-21 advantage.

“It’s a great win, every facet of the game,” Barbee said. “When we need big plays, they’re coming through with big plays. … It’s not about who is getting what. It’s truly a team effort.”

St. Margaret’s led, 28-14, at halftime behind three touchdown passes by Krantz and plenty contributions from its defense and special teams.

Freshman Ryan Cragun provided the early spark by blocking a 25-yard field goal attempt on Christian’s game-opening drive, which chewed up 8:26.

On St. Margaret’s first play, Krantz connected with fellow sophomore Auston Locke on a quick slant for a 94-yard touchdown pass.

Christian used its second fake punt to drive for the tying TD early in the second but the Tartans quickly grabbed control. Gomez scored on a 21-yard option run, his 41st TD, with 8:44 left in the opening half. The senior scored after Shanks’ 55-yard run on an option play to the Christian 26.

Krantz stayed hot later in the second, capping a 65-yard drive with a 30-yard TD pass to Locke on a third-and-7 with 4:17 left in the first half.

The quarterback later turned an interception by defensive lineman Jake Bradley off a deflection into a 20-yard touchdown to Fernando Delgado about a minute later and a 28-7 lead.

Krantz completed 15 of 24 passes while Locke had three receptions for 140 yards. Delgado also had interception to go along with four catches for 80 yards. The Tartans also received strong defensive backs from Sam Harnisch and Dalan Cragun.