Last-second Krigbaum plunge gives ’Cats muchneeded road win
YUMA — The Brawley Wildcats narrowly avoided their third consecutive loss to a Yuma-based school this year by edging the Cibola High Raiders, 21-19, Friday night.
In a game that Brawley manage to snatch from the jaws of defeat, both offenses started off stuck in first gear.
Following a scoreless first quarter from both squads, Brawley’s special teamers were able inject some life into the proceedings, stuffing a Cibola punt attempt to give the Wildcat offense possession on the Raider 13-yard line.
Wasting no time in capitalizing on this bit of good fortune, freshman quarterback Ethan Gutierrez ran it into the end zone on the Wildcats’ next play to put them up six (seven with the first of three critical Xavier Pereyda PATs, which ultimately accounted for Brawley’s margin of victory).
Proving that good teams will take what their opponent gives them, the usually pass-happy Raiders responded to Brawley’s score with a long drive — running the ball (nearly) the length of the field and scoring six points of their own on a 2-yard run by John Beltran with 3:23 to play in the second quarter.
Unfortunately for the Wildcats, the fallout from this particular touchdown drive would prove to be worse than points on the scoreboard.
The usual jousting in the end zone at the end of Beltran’s plunge ended with the ejection of a Wildcat player.
One ejection became two on the Raiders’ successful PAT attempt, whcn a Brawley player was cited for “targeting” Cibola’s place kicker, whom he ran into after the kick.
Despite the losses (and they weren’t small, with the two players covering six starting positions) the ’Cats made a good show of being undaunted, going back to work on offense and making it all the way down to the goal line before being stopped a foot short of pay dirt when senior fullback Blake Krigbaum was unable to break the plane on a dive, leaving the score 7-7 at the break.
Cibola took its first lead of the game in the third quarter on a 39yard pass from quarterback Quanah Locklear to 6-foot, 5-inch tight end Liam Hoffmeyer (the PAT was no good), but Brawley was able to answer with a six-minute drive capped by a make-up 1-yarder by Krigbaum (who finished with 91 yards on 20 carries) to retake the lead with Pereyda’s leg at 14-13.
Locklear found Hoffmeyer again — this time from 11 yards out — early in the fourth quarter but the Raiders’ extra-point woes continued as an attempted two-point pass fell incomplete, leaving Cibola up 19-14.
Things looked dire for Brawley after its next possession ended in a punt.
The Raiders took the ball and drove into the red zone looking for a game-sealing score, but when they gambled on a fourth-down play from the Wildcat 22, Brawley’s defense checked them.
Still, with 3:42 on the clock and operating deep in their own territory, the Wildcats would need some late magic to come out on top.
It turned out Gutierrez (who completed eight of 12 passes for 100 yards on the night) had some magic in reserve, and he used it to engineer the winning drive.
Two passes got Brawley to midfield, where two major penalties against Cibola — a roughing the passer call, followed by a personal foul — gave the Wildcats a leg up, pushing them deep into Raider territory.
There, facing third-and-goal from the 4-yard line with 23 seconds remaining and no time outs, Brawley again turned to Krigbaum, who dragged several tacklers (and one football) into the end zone for the win.
“I was not going to stop,” said Krigbaum, of his turf-churning tote, “When they called the play I didn’t feel any pressure, I just thought, ‘It’s done’. … When I hit the end zone I was so overwhelmed … I was thanking God — all the emotions of the game just came out.”
The victory evens Brawley’s nonleague record at 2-2. Their two losses were to Yuma Catholic and Gila Ridge High School.
The Wildcats return to action on Friday night when they host the Kofa Kings at Warne Field at 7 p.m.