Prep football playoff roundup
Top-seeded Roswell up next for Tigers; Huskies to play at No. 1 Socorro
Los Lunas and Hope Christian advanced to state football championship games with semifinal victories Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers, seeded second in Class 5A, broke free from a 14-all tie with No. 3 Goddard at the Wool Bowl in Roswell and went on to beat the Rockets 35-14.
Big defensive end Bryce Santana, who has become one of Los Lunas’ most valuable offensive players, ran for a touchdown and even threw one to another Tigers DE, Tyler Kiehne, both in the decisive second half. Santana also ran for a TD in the first half.
Running back Derek Chavez broke loose for a long touchdown in that second half as well for Los Lunas (10-2), which will play host to No. 1 seed Roswell (12-0) at 2 p.m. next Saturday in the 5A championship game.
“That was the goal the whole year,” Tigers coach Jeremy Maupin said. The Los Lunas ground game, he said, was the difference after halftime as the Tigers beat Goddard for the second time this season.
CLASS 3A SEMIFINALS: No. 2 seed Hope Christian (10-2) smoked No. 3 Robertson 36-0 in Las Vegas on Saturday afternoon.
Hope will appear in its first football final, at No. 1 Socorro. Warriors coach Damien Ocampo told the Journal that he believes the game will be 1 p.m. Saturday.
The Huskies blocked two punts, and Isaiah Trujillo returned the opening kickoff of the second half for an 88-yard touchdown after Hope took a 12-0 lead into the half.
Blaine Miller had a firsthalf touchdown run less than two minutes into the game after a Robertson turnover. Trujillo added a field goal, and the Huskies also scored a safety in the first half.
The Cardinals (10-2), meanwhile, generated nothing against that stout Hope Christian defense that registered its eighth shutout of the year and stopped Robertson from reaching its fifth straight state title game.
“That’s the way our defense has been playing all year,” Huskies coach Gary Beck said. “Our defense is playing at a high level right now.”
■ In Socorro on Saturday, the Warriors (11-1) got out to a 14-0 lead in the first half, but it was quarterback Payson Hicks’ long touchdown pass to Michael McDaniel in the fourth quarter, with Socorro holding a 14-6 lead, that proved to be the clincher in a 21-14 victory over No. 5 seed Tularosa.
CLASS 4A SEMIFINALS: No. 1 Bloomfield and No. 2 Portales advanced Saturday. The Bobcats rallied late for a 48-41 victory over No. 4 Grants, while the Rams, on the road, defeated No. 3 Lovington 26-7.
The final is 1 p.m. Saturday in Bloomfield.
The Bobcats scored two TDs in the final four minutes, including the game-winner from Kenyon Mosley.
CLASS 2A CHAMPIONSHIP: No. 1 seed Eunice (12-1) capped off its season with a 56-27 win over visiting No. 3 seed Texico on Saturday.