The Twentynine Palms Varsity Wildcats delivered an amazing come- from-behind win Friday night over visiting Granite Hills, thanks to a 76-yard screen pass play in the final minutes. After Granite Hills tied the game with a little over 3 minutes to play, an interception return for a score gave the Cougars a 23 – 16 lead with just a little over a 1:45 seconds left to play. However the Wildcats would not go quietly, as junior Beayahn Carrllo took a short screen pass in the middle of the field and raced through traffic for an incredible score. Carrllo ran through the final defender to give the home team a chance for the victory. The ’Cats chose to go for a two-point conversion rather than settle for the point after tying point. Junior quarterback Jimmy Shragge scrambled around the right end, weaving around defenders, before finding freshman wide out Deshaun Barrett open for the winning 2-point play and the 24-23 lead. The ’Cats needed to hold Granite Hills in the final minute to prevent a long field goal try. The visitors made it to the 45-yard line but were stopped on four consecutive plays. Shragge deflected the final long pass of the contest and the ’Cats celebrated a big non-league victory over the larger division team.
The Wildcats took an early lead in the game, stopping the Cougars on three consecutive plays. On the first punt, Beayahn Carrllo raced through the field, picking up numerous blocks from his fellow teammates on a dazzling run, giving the ’Cats an early 6-0 lead on the 80-yard punt return. The Cougars would respond later in the quarter with a long 12-play drive, completing two fourth-down and short plays. On the final fourth down and two from the 45-yard-line, an off-tackle play broke open for a long run and the Cougars retook the lead 7-6 through halftime.
On the ’Cats’ first play from scrimmage of the third quarter, Carrllo would once again follow impressive blocking, and race 74 yards for another score. The two point conversion pass from Shragge to junior Demetrius Holmes made it 14-7 early in the third. Late in the third quarter, a Wildcats’ fumble inside their own 20 yard line gave the Cougars a scoring opportunity. On the next play from scrimmage a power pass play gave the visitors a chance to tie, but the extra point attempt failed on a mishandled snap. Taking a 14-13 lead into the fourth quarter the ’Cats gained momentum thanks to a big quarterback sack by junior linebacker Andrew Wilson. The sack in the end zone for a safety gave the ’Cats a 16-13 lead with a little over six minutes to play. The Cougars converted a fourth and ten-pass play for 35 yards to set up a tying field goal before the final minute fire works began.
“This was a great character building win for the team, as our players showed a lot of heart and never gave up, especially after the interception return”, stated Head Coach Ernest Martinez. “This was a total team effort, and a lot of players made key contributions throughout the game.” Outstanding defensive players of the game were Andrew Wilson, Kyle Hope, Colton Myers, Dylan Martinez, Jayson Nomura, Josh Alderson and Shane Estrada. The three junior linebackers led the team in tackles and combined for 38 total tackles. The defensive front led by three seniors combined for three sacks and played outstanding throughout the game.
Offensive leaders were Beayahn Carrllo with three touchdowns and 110 yards rushing. The offensive line led by Miguel Romo, Nick Folts, Dustin Reed, Shane Estrada, and Eric Jordan played well throughout.
With the victory, the Wildcats take their 4-1-season record on the road to Indio to face a very tough De Anza league foe in Shadow Hills. The Knights have the same 1-0 league record on the season. This will be a meeting of two CIF playoff contenders, in a very important league contest. The Knights are now 3-2 having defeated two DVL teams in Palm Desert and Cathedral City. The frosh-soph contest will start at 4:15 followed by the varsity at 7 p.m.
The frosh-soph Wildcats suffered a tough loss, losing by one point. A deflected interception at the 10-yard line prevented a winning Wildcats score in the final seconds of the game.
The Yucca Valley High School varsity Trojan football team lost a shoot-out against Desert Hot Springs 34-41. Coach Andrew Amosa said the Trojans came out firing but came up short on the final minutes. William Perrance scored three rushing touchdowns and Micah Muhammad had two of his own. The Yucca Valley High School junior varsity team fell to a fourth quarter rally by the Desert Hot Springs Eagles 20-17. E.J. Featherstone had eight tackles, forced one fumble, and recovered another fumble. Joseph Jennings had six tackles and a sack. On offense, Lucas Lopez and Daniel Hoover had touchdown runs and Jake Moore rushed for 99 yards.
Joshua Springs Lightning football defeated the visiting Desert Chapel Eagles 50-6 Friday night, improving to 5-0 on the season to open up Victory League play. In CIF 8-man Southern Section, the Lightning held the number one ranking, while Desert Chapel was number two. Kyler Dimoff ran the ball 26 times for 185 yards and three touchdowns. Defensively, Josh Edelbrock earned three sacks on the night, while Dylan Green intercepted an Eagle pass, and Nathan Wilson blocked a punt, recovering it in the end zone for a touchdown.
Coming up in high school sports tomorrow, the Joshua Springs Lighting girls’ volleyball team will host Redlands Adventist Academy at home. First serve is at 5:30 p.m.
