BULLDOGS hold off Hornets
CALEXICO — The week four Game of the Week proved to be the closest contest so far this season, with the football teams from Calexico High School and Calipatria High School battling it out at Ward Field here on Friday night.
The game was decided in the final 12 seconds of the fourth quarter leaving some players cheering for joy and others dejectedly walking back to their respective sideline.
In the end, it was the hosting Bulldogs that celebrated a onepoint, 29-28 week four victory over Calipatria, after they were able to hold off an eager Hornet attack in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs led 29-20 with 4:20 left in the game after Ernesto Covarrubias scored on a 23yard rush and quarterback Jorge Villalobos added the two-point conversion.
The Hornets would not go quietly, however, and after the kickoff used a pass from Ismael Lopez to Fred Beltran for a huge gain that ignited the players, coaches and fans.
The play would set up a 39yard rushing touchdown from Victor Ramirez and after a successful two-point conversion; the visiting team founds themselves down by one, 29-28, with 3:49 left on the field.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Hornets took a gamble with an onside kick that they were able to recover on Calexico’s 43-yard line, giving them possession of the ball and game with 3:46 left on the clock.
The Hornets’ final drives of the game were nothing short of inspiring and were highlighted by runs from Lopez and Nate Banuelos that brought the team to the two yard line.
With 12 seconds left, Calipatria appeared on the verge of a stunning comeback until a fumble was recovered by Calexico’s Yoshua Reza near the two yard line ending the game and handing the Bulldogs their first win of the 2017 season.
“Calipat is a scrappy bunch of guys and their well-coached,” said Bulldog Head Coach John Tyree.
Tyree said while it was good to get a result in the win column, his team still had a lot to work on.
“This is a start,” he said. “We can definitely work from here, but we still have a long way to go.”
Helping the Bulldogs in the victory was Covarrubias, who finished with a total of three rushing touchdowns of 13, 35 and 20 yards.
“I was injured last week, so I only played defense,” explained the senior. “The win feels great. It was about teamwork and working hard at practice all week.”
Scoring for the Hornets was Chris Zendejas with two rushing scores, Lopez with one and Ramirez with one.
With the result, the Bulldogs move to 1-2 on the season, while the Hornets drop to 1-3.
Both teams return to action next week with Calexico traveling to face Desert Mirage and Calipatria remaining at home to host Riverside Prep.