Nicolas Martinez bounded from the two-yard line, using all of his 265-pound frame, and leaped into the end zone to put the Española Valley High School football team ahead by two possessions, Aug. 25, against the Clayton High School Yellowjackets.
The big fullback scored similarly on the two-point conversion to put the final score at 22-8.
After a season where Española won just a single game, going 1-9, they have already matched last season’s total win count after one game.
Martinez carried a major load for the Sundevils in their home opener, with 30 carries that led to a tally of 174 yards.
He ran so often, and with such brutal force, that his jersey ripped in the middle of the second quarter. The burden of all that running ended up taking a toll on him late in the third quarter, as he came out of the game with a knee injury.
“The tackle shot right into my knee,” he said after the game, grimacing with an ice bag strapped to his left knee.
Española head coach Jesus Maes, who was the first person to evaluate Martinez after the injury-causing play, said that it looked like a hyperextension, but Martinez will have to get his knee checked out.
Martinez operated as a key piece of a strong Sundevils backfield, one which was the absolute key to offensive victory.
He combined with tailback DeAntrae Curtis and halfback Damian Velasquez, to rack up most of the Sundevils’ yardage in the game.
Curtis scored the two touchdowns before Martinez’s game-ender, both of which came from short passes via quarterback Arlen Garcia to the outside, where Curtis could use his speed and cut to the end zone.
Curtis had 82 yards on the ground, and tallied 51 more yards receiving.
His two touchdowns came early in the game — his second was a few minutes into the second quarter, which put the score at 14-0, as the Sundevils failed to convert on the second extra point.
They currently don’t have a reliable kicker, so they primarily have to take the more risky approach of going for a two-point conversion.
After Española scored their second touchdown, the Yellowjackets put together a good drive into the Sundevils’ half, making their way to the 15-yard line within scoring distance. With the way that the Yellowjackets were moving the ball, a touchdown looked imminent, but Española sophomore cornerback Kebin Marquez quelled their desire for a touchdown in the first half, as he intercepted the ball within five yards of the end zone.
That interception gave the Sundevils the ability to run out the clock in the first half, and go into the locker room with a two-score lead.
They would not hold that 14-0 lead for long though, as Clayton took to the third quarter with purpose.
The Yellowjackets scored mid-way through the third quarter with a 45-yard touchdown pass.
The quarterback scrambled out to the right side, with ample time under his belt and launched the ball toward his receiver, who, floating deep, slanted inside.
Marquez was guarding the receiver that scored and gave his man a little too much room to work with. Clayton converted on a two-point conversion to put the score at 14-8.
“He’s (Marquez) looking for the interception,” Maes said. “He got one down here and I think that kind of got him a little hungry to just play the ball, but you got to play the man and you’ve got to stick with him.”
Thanks to the Sundevils’ running game, and some fumbles and fouls that went their way, Española was able to clinch the game, and safely escape Clayton with a win.
The defense did not allow the Yellowjackets any room to advance in the fourth quarter.
“I saw some perseverance,” Maes said. “When things didn’t go their way, when they (Clayton) scored and we were down only one possession, I figured that we can see how we respond to adversity. They responded well to adversity and that’s what you want to see out of a championship team.”
For Maes, this game offered a special incentive, as he has yet to defeat Clayton in any of his coaching stops.
This was the first time he was able to face-off against the Yellowjackets with a team that was actually favored to win.
“I’ve been around the block too,” he said. “I’ve matched up maybe six or seven times against them. And finally, it’s nice to have the upperhand with some athletes to match up with them, and then you can rely on your scheme to make things happen.”