by Billy Donati
KRTN Multi-Media
RATON — The Raton Tigers and the Robertson Cardinals met in the Jungle for the final regular season game for the Tigers. In anticipation of a district showdown, the Cardinals were able to make the plays and seize momentum in the second half to pull away for a 37 – 14 win.
Following unsuccssful drives by both squads, The Cardinals marched 93 yards with QB Jesse Gonzales passing and running for a 12-play drive capped by an 18-yard TD pass to Mateo Contreras.
The defenses traded 3 and outs into the second quarter before Raton would take over on their own 37. A Wildcat formation run for WD Hyer to get the first down and then a 33 yard connection to Wyatt Berry, before Jacob Mattorano connected with Mario Alvarez for an 11 yard TD and with Logan Elliott’s PAT the score was knotted at 7 all with 8:13 left in the half.
The Cardinals’ Jesse James Gonzales is adept at improvising when the play breaks down and he showed his ability with the first half winding down, scrambling and finding Mateo Contreras in the back of the end zone.
It appeared the teams would go into the locker room with Raton trailing by 7.
But with a second left, Cardinal kicker Aaron Doss boomed a fifty-yard field goal as time expired, leaving Raton trailing by 10.
In the third, the Cardinals received and it didn’t take long for Gonzales to use his legs around the left side for a 47-yard TD.
The Cardinals would get a third TD in the third quarter as they overcame a first and 20 on their own 15 to march down the field and score with :13 left in the period when Gonazales found Nathaniel Gonzales with a 27-yard strike to make it 37 – 7.
Raton’s Matthew Munoz was one of ten seniors playing their last regular season home game on Friday and he got the fourth quarter rolling Raton’s way with a good kickoff return and then bookended the drive with a two-yard run at the end of a seven-minute possession to make the final score 37 – 14.
The other Raton senior players included Hyer, Mattorano, Alvarez, Eric Burgos, Kaleb Salazar, Isaac Garcia, Carson Chatterly, Garcia and Joseph Arguello.
Raton will have a bye week next week, before the seeding is announced for the playoffs for 3A.
