Warriors Romp
PUEBLO- The Warriors played the Pueblo West Titans Sunday. Both teams came away victorious. In the fifth and sixth grade game, the first quarter started off with the Titans scoring first. The Warriors wasted no time scoring as Destry Crockett scored a touchdown on the first snap of the ball. Javier (Buddy) Romero scored the Point After Touchdown. A defensive battle ensued and the first half ended tied at 7. The defensive struggle continued as both teams entered the fourth still tied at 7-7. The fourth quarter of the game was the most exciting for the players and fans as the kids really stepped up their game. On the Titans first possession in the fourth, the Warriors continually pushed back the Titans. Romero and Chris Ortiz joined forces to tackle the ball carrier making it 3rd and 12. On the next possession Crockett, Ortiz and Tanner Ragan showed defensive dominance and teamwork as they contained and brought down the ball carrier, forcing the Titans to punt. Warrior Kyle Brooks received the punt and ran it all the way in for a touchdown. The PAT failed giving the Warriors a 13-7 lead. Another great defensive stand allowed the Warriors to take over on downs. The Warriors scored once again as Romero ran in for the touchdown and Brooks scored the extra point, making the final score 20-7. With the victory, the team is 2-1 for the season.
The third and fourth grade team took the field only to dominate Pueblo West from the opening play. Alex Berger very quickly scored a touchdown and extra point. The Warriors controlled the game on both sides of the ball as Warriors Trevor Warren and Andrew Gomez drove the Titans back forcing them to punt. A great return gave the Warriors excellent field possession. On the next possession Berger would once again run in for a touchdown and PAT giving the Warriors a 14-0 first-quarter lead. Warrior Warren quickly ran in a touchdown with PAT scored by Berger to close out the half leading 21-0. The great Warrior defense held the Titans scoreless until late in the fourth quarter, enabling the offense to score at will.
The third quarter held even more excitement for Warrior fans as Keenan Leal also scored a touchdown. The Titans once again were plagued with errors as they threw an interception which was caught by Warrior Ty Warren. On the next possession Trevor Warren would run it in for TD with Berger once again scoring the PAT. The score at end of the third quarter was 34-0. The Titans managed to break away for a long run late in the fourth quarter for their only score of the game. In the end, the younger Warriors won 34-6, bringing their record to 3-0.
Panther and Redskin Netters in Weekend Action
WALSENBURG- The John Mall Volleyball team opened their season in Custer County last Thursday and walked away with an impressive victory. Down two games, the Lady Cats came roaring back to take the next three games to capture the set and their first victory of the season.
The following Saturday, the Panthers hosted an eight-team invitational pool play tournament and failed to get on track, losing to all three teams in their pool. Teams squared off in two four-team pools in a round-robin format. Winners in each pool then played for the championship and third place. John Mall entered two teams including their varsity and junior varsity teams. Also participating in the tournament were the La Veta Redskins.
The Cats opened play against the Del Norte Tigers, losing two close games 25-22 and 26-24. The Cats led by four at one point, but the Tigers came back with six unanswered points to take the lead.
On court number two, the John Mall JV opened against the Kim Mustangs. Kim came out strong, but the tenacity of the Lady JV team kept them in the match, only to fall 25-12 and 25-14. Kim played for the Championship from their respective pool.
The highlight of the morning pitted John Mall and La Veta in a rematch of last year’s tournament championship game. La Veta, who had lost their opening set to ultimate champion Antonito, came out fighting with hard hits and four blocked shots to take control of the offense. Cristina Koutnik served five straight points to help the Skins take the first game 25-16. In the second game, the Panthers found themselves trailing, but five straight points put them back into the game. Redskin Shea Brgoch and Panther Katie Monahan were pitted against one another on the net on more than one occasion, blocking shots and hitting hard points to gain the advantage for their respective teams. In the end, La Veta took control and beat the Panthers for the win 25-20 and the set.
John Mall dropped their last match of the morning to Antonito while the Redskins defeated Del Norte, propelling them into the placement rounds. The Skins had little trouble defeating Center in two straight games, 25-15 and 25-18 to claim third place.
According to Skin coach, Bree Lessar, "We didn′t play as well as we should have against Antonito. The girls were nervous."
The Panthers are now 1-3 while La Veta is 3-1. The Panther’s next opponent is Fountain Valley, September 6 at 2 pm in Widefield.
The Redskins will travel to Sargent today, Thursday, September 4, then host Del Norte on Friday the 5th, travel to Sanford on Saturday September 6, and finally, home against the John Mall Panthers on Tuesday September 9.
Duffers 8th
LIMON- The John Mall golfers traveled to Limon last Friday and walked away with an eighth-place finish, having met teams in this eighteen-team tournament who mostly compete in the 4A division. According to Coach Lee Vigil, they played great rounds despite not playing for a week. Players who participated included Justin Eccher, who shot an 87, Steve Rodriguez with a 97, Greg Bobian at 99 and Joel Martinez with 119. The Panthers will be at Grandote for the La Veta Invitational today and will host their own tournament here on Friday. They will travel to Rocky Ford on Saturday. Vigil indicated, "It will be a busy weekend for the guys. We should win our own tournament."
Runners Run Wild
ALAMOSA- The John Mall Cross Country runners competed in their first meet of the season last Saturday, finishing fifth overall in a field of twelve teams. They competed against 4A schools and turned in incredible times. The boys’ time qualified in the meet while the girls’ time did not qualify because the girls did not have the third runner necessary to post a team score. Coach Corsentino is looking for more girls to step up who are willing to run with the team. She said that it’s not too late to join the team.
Skins Heel Dogs
PRIMERO- The Bulldogs lay down and played dead when the mighty Redskins of La Veta came to town last Friday. The Redskins took control of the game early and took the bite out of Primero/Holy Trinity defeating them 46-0. La Veta got on the board early as Ron Ortivez led the offense and drove the field in the first two minutes to score on a 13- yard run. Steve Kimbrel took the pass to convert the point after touchdown and the Redskins never looked back.
The Redskin defense was equally tough as they held Primero to less than 100 total yards of offense in the game, gaining a third-quarter safety in the process. The game, however, belonged to the offense as La Veta scored from all over the field. Ortivez also scored on runs of thirty-five, thirty-one and four yards. Jon Brunelli and Trey Price scored on runs of twelve and nine yards respectively.
While Ortivez had an exceptional game, he was quick to point out it was a team effort, and he could not have done it without the blocking up front. Ortivez said later, “It wasn’t me. We are a team. We did it.” The team played as a cohesive unit capitalizing on Bulldog mistakes and playing a nearly flawless game.
Their next opponent will be the Manzanola Bobcats at home Friday with kickoff at 7 pm. The Bobcats dropped their opener to McClave 38-0 last weekend and should be no match against the Redskins.
Panthers Lose Opener
SARGENT- The John Mall Panthers opened their 2008 season under the direction of new head coach, Ken Berger in disappointing fashion, falling to the Farmers 49-6. The Cats kept it close in the first half, but the Farmer offense was no match for the Panthers as they opened it up in the second half and scored 28 unanswered points. The Panthers next opponent will be a home game on Friday Sept. 5th against the Center Vikings. Kickoff is slated for 7 pm. The Vikings dropped their opener to Las Animas 42-0.
