It was a tough weekend for local high school football teams as all five programs took a loss, three of them via the mercy rule.
Bloomfield 62, Española 12
Yes, the host Sundevils (4-5, 2-4 in District 2-4A) did not perform up to expectations Saturday, but the score was somewhat misleading, coach Caleb Holbrook said.
“The best thing is no matter what the scoreboard shows, the question is are we losing or are we learning,” Holbrook pointed out.
But against a team like the defending champion and top ranked Bobcats, there is so little room for error.
With the second quarter winding down, Española trailed 28-12, but was driving for a potential touchdown.
But a Bloomfield interception was returned the other way for a 97-yard touchdown, then the Sundevils had a quick possession and punted the ball back to the Bobcats, who put up another quick score before halftime and all of sudden Española trailed 42-12.
Still, there were things Holbrook saw that he liked.
“Defensively, we came out and played hard, aggressive,” he said. ”
St. Michael’s 61, Pojoaque Valley 7
Facing two-time defending champion and the top ranked Horsemen on Saturday, the visiting Elks (4-4, 1-2 in District 2-3A) showed improvement, but still not enough.
St. Mike’s scored repeatedly in those closing moments to suck the life from the Elks.
There were some bright spots in that Jaden Leyba-Moya had a 79-yard touchdown run early and the game went longer than last season, when it was over at halftime on the mercy rule, while this went well into the fourth quarter.
Navajo Prep 34, McCurdy 28
Despite four rushing touchdowns and 236 yards on the ground from running back JJ Vigil and another 156 rushing yards from Julian Niño, the visiting Bobcats (4-5, 1-3 in District 1-2A) came up short in a big district game against the Eagles.
Fort Sumner/House 46, Escalante 12
Injuries Friday took a toll on the host Lobos (7-3, 4-1 in District 2) in a meeting with the top ranked Foxes in the regular-season finale.
Navajo Pine 42, Dulce 6
The visiting Hawks (0-7, 0-3 in District 1) finished off their first season under coach Jeremy Wooten with a loss, but this game was their closest of the year.