The Pagosa Springs High School Pirate football team won its homecoming game Friday night, Oct. 16, defeating the Gunnison Cowboys by a score of 42-13.
It was also senior night as the Pirates honored the seven seniors on this year’s roster: Hudson Mazur, Braylon Landry, Jimmy Elledge, Zander Lefthandbull, Emanuel Manjarrez and Jerry Su.
“They’ve meant a lot to this program,” coach Nathan Morales said of the seniors, noting it was the first year on the team for a couple of them.
Morales mentioned it’s always good to win homecoming games and on senior night, adding “[the seniors] mean a lot to this team, and we’re all playing for ‘em.”
Scoring started early in the game, with the Cowboys scoring on the game’s initial possession.
The Pirates followed with a touchdown of their own, returning the ensuing kickoff, as Mazur ran it back for 78 yards. A successful two-point attempt converted by Kasen Limebrook put the Pirates up 8-7.
The Pirates got on the scoreboard again later in the first quarter with a 6-yard touchdown run by Alex Pacheco. Another two-point conversion from Limebrook extended the Pirates’ lead to 16-7 going into the second quarter.
Pagosa found the end zone two more times before halftime with a 67-yard rushing touchdown from Mazur and a 4-yard rushing touchdown by Pacheco.
The Cowboys had a scoreless second quarter as the Pirates held a 28-7 lead at halftime.
Gunnison was able to score first in the second half with a 9-yard rushing touchdown, bringing the score to 28-13.
Mazur extended the Pirates’ lead with another long rush, going for a 70-yard touchdown in the third quarter.
Pacheco added to the Pirates’ lead in the fourth quarter with a 60-yard rushing touchdown.
The Pirates converted three out of five two-point attempts on the night, and Mazur was unsuccessful on his only extra-point attempt.
The Pirates put up a total of 435 yards of offense on the night, led by Mazur and Pacheco combining for 397 yards and all six of the Pirates’ touchdowns.
Mazur tallied 222 yards and three touchdowns on 13 attempts, while Pacheco racked up 175 yards and two touchdowns on 20 attempts.
Gage Sams ran for 28 yards on eight attempts and Gabe Torres put up 8 yards on one attempt.
Adam Candelaria had one rushing attempt on the night for a 1-yard gain, and Limebrook completed one of two pass attempts for a 1-yard gain.
Morales commented on the offensive line’s performance, explaining that he was responsible for blocking mistakes in the Pirates’ previous game against Aspen.
“This week they said, ‘No, we got you coach,’ and they definitely went out and executed this week, so I couldn’t be more proud of them,” Morales said of the Pirates’ offensive line.
The Pirates’ defense forced two turnovers on the night, with Ty Garcia recovering a fumble and Colten Ulibarri coming up with an interception.
The Pirates’ offense lost one fumble on the night.
Reese Jenkins led the Pirates in solo tackles, coming up with nine, followed by Colby Ross with six.
Coal Ridge
Entering the final week of the regular season, the Pirates are ranked 18th in the state and are set to face off against the No. 17th ranked team, the Coal Ridge Titans, on Friday, Oct. 23, in New Castle at 7 p.m.
Morales mentioned the “job’s not done” coming out of the team’s homecoming victory.
Coal Ridge and Pagosa each have an overall record of 4-4, including league marks of 3-2, and sit just outside the top 16 teams in the state to earn a playoff berth.
“We gotta be road warriors,” Morales said in regard to the Pirates’ trip to New Castle. “We’ve kind of said that; we haven’t had it go our way yet.”
The Pirates are looking for what would be their first road victory of the season.
Morales mentioned that the Pirates need a good week of practice for their matchup against the Titans, noting that it’ll be a fun game between two good teams.
“But, we just gotta take care of ourselves and make sure we execute,” he said.
Morales stressed the Pirates need to take care of the football in order to be successful against Coal Ridge, along with “playing disciplined” and picking up crucial first downs on offense.
The Pirates have had multiple players out over the course of the season with injuries, and Morales explained the team has maintained a “next-man-up” mentality.
“There’s a lot of guys that have done well for us,” he said.
With a potential playoff spot on the line, Morales explained that the topic keeps getting brought up, “but we got Coal Ridge this week, and that’s what we’re focused on.”
Morales noted the Pirates aren’t focusing on playoffs, but rather taking care of business against Coal Ridge, and “the rest will take care of itself.”
clayton@pagosasun.com
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