News|Opinion|
Main Menu|Archives Menu|Classified|Advertising|Monahans|
Monday, October 7, 1996
Kermit turned the ball over three times in the third period of their
games earlier this season against Seagraves and McCamey, and those teams
turned each of those mistakes into touchdowns, on the way to
double-digit wins.
Friday night, the Eagles did turn Kermit's first giveaway of the third
period into a score, as Jose Contreras picked off a Todd Allen pass and
returned it 27 yards for a touchdown to give Pecos a 21-0 lead. But
after getting turnovers on the Jackets' next two possessions the Eagles
came up empty, losing the ball back to Kermit after the second turnover.
The Jackets then went on a 16-play 90-yard drive to get on the
scoreboard, followed that up with another score 4½ minutes later, and
came up a half-yard short of getting a 1st-and-goal at the Pecos 7 with
1:06 to play, as the Eagles held on for a 21-13 victory.
"We just mentally let down and let them back into the game, that's the
disappointing thing," Eagles' coach Mike Belew said. "We played well at
times, but we've got to learn to put people away when we have them in
that position. We need to turn up the intensity instead of turning it
down."
"I'm happy for the victory, but disappointed about letting down the way
we did," the Eagles' coach said, while adding, "I think it does show
we're a pretty good football team, if we can still win when we're not
playing our best."
The Eagles took a little while to get their intensity up at the start of
the game on offense, going three plays and out on their first two series
before taking advantage of one Kermit mistake to get out of a possible
jam, and a second to set up their first score of the game.
The first break came when Richard Gutierrez fielded a low punt snap and
kicked the ball straight up in the air, ending up with a 1-yard punt
that was downed on Pecos' 39. Fortunately, Kermit had 12 men on the
field, giving the Eagles an automatic first down, which was followed by
a facemasking penalty and another first down moments later.
The Eagles didn't score on the drive, but they backed Kermit up into
their own territory, and after Pecos' defense stopped the Jackets on
three plays, punter Arnold Navarro saw the ball snapped over his head
and down to the five. He was able to run it up to the 15, but that was
still well short of the first down, and the Eagles took over.
Joseph Grant broke through to sack Jason Abila for an eight-yard loss on
the next play, but the Eagles' quarterback then hooked up with Moses
Martinez. It was the first pass between the two this season that didn't
go for a touchdown, but Martinez' fifth catch of the year was still good
for 19 yards and a first down, and on the second play of the second
quarter Mark Abila went over from 2-yards out for his first touchdown of
the year. Gutierrez added the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
The Eagles' defense again stopped Kermit on three plays on their next
series, and, after a short Navarro punt, took over at the Kermit 45 and
proceeded to drive down the field in nine plays for their second score.
A Kermit offsides gave the Eagles another first down by penalty, and
Abila hooked up with Jason Aguilar on a 14-yard pass despite bobbling
the snap from center. Abila would then sneak for a first down on
4th-and-inches at the Kermit 7, and two plays later swung a pass out to
Gutierrez, who was able to dive across the goal line for his first
receiving touchdown of the year.
When Contreras stepped in front of Allen's pass over the middle to Danny
Simonds and went in for the score 57 seconds into the third period, the
Eagles had held the Jackets to just 31 yards total offense and two first
downs in the game. After that, Kermit picked up 13 more first downs and
another 228 yards, 133 of that through the air, as Allen got hot and one
of his receivers got lucky.
But it took a while for any of that to have an effect. Allen found Louie
Bossett with a 12-yard pass right after Contreras' score, then looked
have another first down at the Pecos 40 on a scramble around left end.
But he was nailed from behind by Mark Abila and fumbled, with Nufie
Flores recovering for Pecos.
The Eagles were stopped on their next series when Jason Abila slipped on
a run around end, and after getting the ball back Allen found Jack Keen
for a 15-yard completion. His next pass was dropped by Bossett, and one
play after that, Allen's pass to Keen was picked off by Eric Abila at
the Pecos 33.
This time, the Eagles did get a couple of first downs before stalling,
and Jason Abila's deep third down pass to Martinez was intercepted by
Jacoby Phillips at the 10. This time, instead of going to the air while
near their own territory, Kermit stayed on the ground with Bossett and
Jason Harris and began marching upfield.
Combined with Kermit's line, which began opening holes up the middle,
the Jackets ran the ball past midfield before going back to the air.
Allen hit Simonds for six yards just before the period ended, and then
on 1st-and-15 from the Pecos 26, hooked up with tight end Jared Mills
for 22 yards. An Allen keeper got it to the two, and Harris went over on
the next play, with Bossett adding the extra point.
Now it was Pecos' turn to go three and out and give Kermit good field
position with a short punt. Taking over at the Eagles 42, the Jackets
drove to the 18 before an illegal procedure call and a sack of Allen by
Hector Lozano put Kermit in a 2nd-and-20 hole.
But the hole wasn't very deep, as Allen found Keen along the sideline
for 12 yards, and then saw his wide receiver pick the ball out of the
air at the goal line and go in for the score, after it bounced off Mills
at the 5-yard line.
Down 21-13 with five minutes to play, the Jackets elected to go for two
points but failed, when Allen was stopped on a keeper around right end.
However, Kermit still had a chance to tie if they could stop Pecos,
which they did when Grant again broke through to sack Abila.
Taking over at their own 47 with 2:21 to play, Allen his Simonds for 19
yards on a 3rd-and-8 play, then found him again 20 yards downfield on
the next play for a first down just outside the 17 with 1:39 to go.
That's when Keen's luck ran out. After a Bossett draw netted just two
yards Keen was ruled to have just missed getting his feet in bounds on a
sidelines pass at the Pecos 5. Allen then went to him again over the
middle, but he was hit by Rocky Urias at the 5 and couldn't hold on.
That brought up 4th-and-8, and after rolling right, Allen took off
downfield, getting as far as the Pecos 8 before he was hit by Mark Abila
and stopped just short of a first down. The Eagles took over and needed
just two plays to run out the clock.
"We were flat going into the game for whatever reason, but we got some
early breaks that went our way and started playing well," Belew said.
"Then we came out in the second half and Joseph got that big
interception and we just went back to being flat again.
"Hopefully, we will learn from this that if you don't go and put people
away, you can let them back into the game which is what we allowed
Kermit to do tonight," added the Eagles' coach, whose team enters
District 4-4A play with a 3-2 season record.
District play opens for the Eagles on Friday night at Big Spring against
the Steers, who came up short in the closing seconds for the fourth time
in five games this season, losing at Levelland 14-6 to fall to 1-4 on
the season. Kermit, meanwhile, begins District 3-4A play this Friday
against the Reagan County Owls.
The Jackets' district rival, Crane, was routed Friday by Pecos' district
rival, Fort Stockton, 44-12. The Panthers begin district at home against
San Angelo Lake View, 28-6 winners over Snyder, while Andrews, 27-20
losers to Lubbock Estacado, goes to Sweetwater in the other 4-4A opener.
Sweetwater remained undefeated with a 22-0 shutout of Lubbock Monterey.
at Kermit
Pecos 0 14 7 0 - 21
Kermit 0 0 0 13 - 13
Second Quarter
Pec. - M. Abila 2 run (Gutierrez kick), 0:45.
Pec. - Gutierrez 6 pass from J. Abila (Gutierrez kick), 7:07.
Third Quarter
Pec. - Contreras 27 interception return (Gutierrez kick), 0:57.
Third Quarter
Ker. - Harris 2 run (Bossett kick), 2:30.
Ker. - Keen 19 pass from Allen (run failed), 6:54.
_
Pec Ker
First Downs 10 15
Rushes-Yds. 40-102 33-104
Passing Yds 65 155
Passes 5-14-1 10-20-2
Punts-Avg 5-23.4 2-20
Fumbles-lost 1-0 2-1
Penalties-Yds. 8-45 7-68
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING - Pecos, Gutierrez 17-58, M. Abila 11-30, J. Aguilar 5-9, J.
Abila 8-5. Kermit, Bossett 14-68, Harris 9-41, Allen 7-13, Navarro
3-(-8).
PASSING - Pecos, J. Abila 5-13-1-65, J. Aguilar 0-1-0-0. Kermit, Allen
10-20-2-155.
RECEIVING - Pecos, J. Aguilar 2-28, Martinez 1-19, Flores 1-12,
Gutierrez 1-6. Kermit, Simonds 4-67, Keen 3-46, Mills 1-22, Bossett
1-12, Mooney 1-8.
MISSED FIELD GOALS - None.
It was a game that was not typical of the Bears, who committed three
turnovers and had 77 yards in penalties. Missed points-after-touchdown
were also a problem, as was stopping the Cowboys' ground game.
The Bears were 10-point favorites going into the game and played
impressively for much of the contest except for their lapses that led to
problems, particularly in the second half.
Both teams gambled extensively, going for a first on a number of fourth
down and long situations.
Grandfalls took the kick-off to start the contest and moved from their
own 28 to score on a 28-yard run by Alfonso Marquez after a hard-fought
drive. Corey Moore added the PAT to give the Cowboys an 8-0 lead with
8:14 to go in the first quarter.
Balmorhea took the ball on their first possession and moved in quickly
for their first score. Most of the yardage came on a 37-yard pass from
Arturo Miranda to Scott Clark. On the next play, Roger Lopez went the
final four yards for the score and Zane Rhyne added the PAT to knot the
score at 8-8 with 6:30 left in the first stanza.
The Cowboys next possession ended with their only turnover, a fumble at
the Bears 35 which was recovered by Miranda. Again the Bears moved in
quickly to score with Lopez going the final three yards this time.
However, the PAT was blocked and the Bears only had a 14-8 lead with
2:49 left in the first quarter.
Grandfalls retaliated quickly, moving from their own 20, with Roy
Vasquez going for 50 yards to cap the quick drive. Moore added the PAT
to give the Cowboys a 16-14 lead, still in the first quarter with 1:35
left.
Both teams were stopped on their next drives, with the Bears going from
their own 33 to the Cowboys' 15 before losing the ball on downs, while
Grandfalls drove from there to Balmorhea's 19 before being stopped.
The Bears next drive looked as if it would end on an interception by
Moore. But a penalty nullified the turnover and Balmorhea then went in
to score, with Miranda going the final 15 yards. The PAT was no good but
the Bears had a 20-16 lead at halftime.
To start the second half, the Bears took the ball and quickly moved
downfield. But the drive stalled at the Cowboy 6, and Grandfalls took
the ball from that point and drove the length of the field, with Marquez
going in to score from 11 yards out. Moore tried to kick the PAT but
missed. However, a roughing the kicker penalty gave Grandfalls another
chance and they converted on a pass from Marquez to Jon Richardson,
giving the Cowboys a 23-20 lead with 11 seconds to go in the third
quarter.
Balmorhea then gave Grandfalls and easy score, as they fumbled away the
ball at their own 20. Vasquez took it in for the score moments later
from a yard out, and Moore kicked the PAT to give the Cowboys a 31-20
lead with 6:54 left in the game.
Some fans might have counted out the Bears but on the kick-off, Vincent
Calderon took the ball 65 yards to score. The try for PAT was no good
but the Bears only trailed by five, 31-26 with 6:41 left in the contest.
However, Grandfalls came right back and on another hard-fought drive,
the Cowboys moved into score with Marquez going 40 yards for the
touchdown and Moore added the PAT, upping the Cowboy advantage to 39-26
with 5:06 left in the game.
The Bears worked their magic again, or at least it looked like it was
going to be that way, as they moved from their own 20 to the Cowboy but
the comeback effort ended with another fumble at the Grandfalls 5.
The Cowboys are now 1-0 in district and 5-0 on the season, while
Balmorhea falls to 1-1 and 4-1 overall. This Friday, the Bears travel to
Sierra Blanca for another district contest.
at Grandfalls
Balmorhea 14 6 0 6 - 26
Grandfalls 16 0 7 16 - 39
First Quarter
Gra. - Marquez 28 run (Moore kick), 1:46.
Bal. - Lopez 5 run (Rhyne kick), 3:30.
Bal. - Lopez 3 run (kick failed), 7:11.
Gra. - Vasquez 50 run (Moore kick), 8:25.
Second Quarter
Bal. - Miranda 15 run (kick failed), 9:21.
Third Quarter
Gra. - Thomas 11 run (Richardson pass from Moore), 9:49.
Fourth Quarter
Gra. - Vasquez 1 run (Moore kick), 3:06.
Bal. - Calderon 65 kickoff return (kick failed), 3:11.
Gra. - Marquez 50 run (Moore kick), 6:55.
Bal Gra
First Downs 6 10
Rushes-Yds. 30-212 42-363
Passing Yds 111 14
Passes 8-13-1 2-11-0
Punts-Avg 0-0 1-45
Fumbles-lost 2-1 1-1
Penalties-Yds. 10-77 3-25
PECOS, Oct. 7 -- The Pecos Eagles got beaten and then got `dissed' by
the San Angelo Lake View Maidens Saturday, but their post-season hopes
weren't hurt that much, thanks to the Big Spring Steers.
Maidens' senior Jennifer Casey showed the Eagles little respect, saying
her team didn't even have to play well to beat Pecos, 15-13, 15-10, in
the final game of the first half of District 4-4A play for both teams.
"It's good when you can play bad or be off and still come out with the
win," Casey told the San Angelo Standard-Times following Lake View's
fifth district victory in as many tries and their 20th in 25 matches
this season.
In contrast, Eagles' coach Nora Geron said it was more what her team
didn't do than what Lake View did to get the victory.
"We're a better team physically than they are, but mentally is where
they get us," Geron said. "We had some kids Saturday who weren't in the
game mentally, and couldn't find their spots, and San Angelo found them.
They scored a lot on dinks."
The Eagles spent Game 1 chasing the Maidens, but were never able to
catch up. Pecos cut a 7-2 lead to 7-5, cut a 12-7 lead to 12-10, then
held Lake View at game point, moving from a 14-10 deficit to 14-13
before San Angelo broke serve and won the game.
The Eagles held Lake View at match point for almost a full rotation in
the second contest, but were only able to cut a 14-8 deficit to 14-10
during that span. Pecos held 2-1, 3-2 and 4-3 leads early, only to see
San Angelo score six straight points for a 9-4 lead, and then open it up
again after the Eagles cut the margin to 10-8.
Lori Marquez connected on eight kills and one dink for Pecos, while also
coming up with a pair of blocks and an ace serve in the losing effort.
Elena Hinojos and Denise Camarena added a pair of ace serves for Pecos,
while Gail Taylor and Ivy Thorp each had two kills and Sherrie Mosby a
kill and a block for the Eagles.
"We did better on serves than we have," said Geron, whose team fell to
2-3 in district play and 10-14 on the season. "We're playing better, but
we just have one or two mental lapses and then we have four or five more
before we recover."
The loss dropped Pecos out of a tie with Fort Stockton for the final
playoff berth, but the Eagles were helped by Big Spring's upset win over
Andrews, whom the Eagles host in a critical match on Tuesday. "If we
take advantage of it, we're O.K.," said Geron. Pecos lost a three-game
match in Andrews to open 4-4A play.
Lake View also won Saturday's junior varsity match, 15-5, 15-11, and
took the only freshman game of the day, by 15-5, 15-8 scores. Geron said
the Eagles sent only one ninth grade squad due to Saturday band practice.
PECOS, Oct. 7 -- The Pecos Eagles' cross country team took first place,
and senior Mauricio Villescas won first individually in the inaugural
Sandhills Cross Country meet in Monahans on Saturday.
Eagles' coach Brannon Jackson said the Eagles defeated Kermit by two
points to win the team title, while Villescas also beat out a Kermit
runner for the individual title.
"We looked good out there today," Jackson said Saturday afternoon.
"Even though it wasn't a regulation course, everybody out there was on a
pace to set a personal record."
"It was a short course. It was supposed to be three miles, but it was
about 2½ miles," Jackson said, explaining Villescas' winning time of
13:48, about 2:10 better than his top time so far this fall. Teammate
Juan Perez was fifth, with a 14:58 time, and Oscar Medrano finished
eighth for the Eagles.
"Mauricio suffered a slight back injury, but he was still able to win,
so we're looking good going into the Abilene Christian Invitational next
Saturday," the Eagles' coach said.
PECOS, Oct. 7 -- The Crockett Eighth grade purple and white teams took
first and second place in their own volleyball tournament, and thanks to
the absence of one team from their division, Zavala's seventh graders
earned the top three spots in their tournament, which were held on
Saturday at the Pecos High School gym.
Neither the seventh grade purple and white teams nor the eighth grade
purple and white teams played a championship game, though the white team
did face the Eagles' seventh grade gold team in the semifinals, winning
15-8, 15-7. Pecos purple downed Kermit in the other semifinal, 15-6,
15-12, and the gold team then took third place over the Yellowjackets,
17-15, 12-15, 15-11.
The gold team had not been scheduled to play, but was added to the
eight-team field when Grandfalls brought only an eighth grade squad to
the tournament.
In that division, Pecos white and purple teams both squeezed out
semifinals wins after opening with victories over Fort Davis and
Grandfalls. The white team downed Crane, 4-15, 15-10, 15-4, while the
purple squad edged Fort Stockton, 13-15, 16-14, 15-9.
Fort Stockton came back to edge Crane for third place in the eighth
grade division, winning 12-15, 15-5, 15-13.
Return to Menu
State and Regional Sports Pages--San Angelo Standard-Times
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall
not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or
redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. Neither these AP
Materials nor any portion thereof may be stored in a computer except for
personal and non-commercial use. The AP will not be held liable for
any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions therefrom or in the
transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages
arising from any of the foregoing.
Copyright 1996 by Pecos Enterprise
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@bitstreet.com
http://www.pecos.net/news