CHULA VISTA — How do you define the 2024 St. Augustine football team?

Back-to-back CIF Section champ is the best way — as strange as it may sound.

The seventh-seeded Saints claimed their second section title in a row with a 13-7 victory over fourth-seeded San Pasqual in Saturdays CIF San Diego Section Division 3 title game at Southwestern College.

What didn’t define them was what propelled the young Saints.

The Saints went 0-10 during the regular season as outgoing transfers changed the look of their roster. But once the Division 3 playoffs kicked off, they ran the table.

“We didn’t let those 10 losses define us,” said senior linebacker Malosi Iuli. “We didn’t let wins and losses define us. We were focused on the championship.”

Said Ron Caragher, the Saints first-year coach: “When you’re in a long losing streak like that, it’s easy to hit the bottom. We stayed the course and only tried to control what we could control.”

St. Augustines Matthew Horne (19) runs th ball against San Pasquals Adrian Leon (8) during the CIF San Diego Section Division 3 football championship game at Southwestern College on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024 in Chula Vista, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

St. Augustine scored on its first three possessions, taking a 13-0 lead at halftime.

Freshman kicker Callen Moore converted a pair of field goals to take the quick 6-0 lead. The first was a 23-yarder with 7:01 left in the opening quarter when the Saints drive ended at the 6-yard line. The second from 25 yards out on the fourth play of the second stanza.

The offense finally finished off a drive the third time with the ball.

A pair of completions from Vincent Smith to Matthew Horne brought the Saints to the 3, and Pai Polamalu took it in from a yard out with 4:48 left in the half.

“We started with the hot hand,” said Smith, who transferred to St. Augustine from rival Cathedral Catholic. “We didn’t do a lot in the second half, but I had faith in my defense.”

The Saints held San Pasqual to 37 second-half yards, all in the air. The Eagles rushed seven times for zero yards.

St. Augustine finished the second half with 200 total yards, 131 through the air. Smith was 6-for-11 for 131 yards in the half. Five of the completions to Horne for 105 yards.

The Saints managed just three first downs in the second half as they tried to run out the clock.

But the Eagles (7-6) didn’t quit.

They finally got on the board late in the fourth quarter, driving 83 yards in 16 plays behind hobbled quarterback Robert Renteria (21-of-33, 210 yards, TD).

He hit receiver Marcos Rocha five times, with the two connecting for a 13-yard score with 35 seconds remaining. Renteria did it all while battling an ankle injury that he suffered more than a month ago.

I would have liked to be 100 percent, but I was only about 50 percent,” said Renteria, who entered the game with over 1,900 yards passing this season. “I had a hard time pushing off and taking off.”

St. Augustines Vincent Smith (12) passes against San Pasqual during the CIF San Diego Section Division 3 football championship game at Southwestern College on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024 in Chula Vista, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Pasqual still didn’t quit.

Kicker Daniel Chacon recovered his own onside kick at the Saints’ 49.

San Pasqual managed to get six plays off in those last 30 seconds, but the drive stalled and they turned it over on downs at the 25 as time ran out.

St. Augustine 13, San Pasqual 7

St. Augustine — 3 10 0 0 – 13

San Pasqual — 0 0 0 7 – 7

SA — Moore 23 FG

SA — Moore 25 FG

SA — Polamalu 1 run (Moore kick)

SP — Rocha 13 pass from Renteria (Chacon kick)