Before kicking off against Monte Vista on Oct. 17, the Dolores High School football team knew it faced a tough test.
Sure enough, the Pirates turned out to be more than worthy opponents as they defeated the Bears 48-7 in Dolores. With the loss, Dolores dropped to 3-5 on the season, while Monte Vista improved to 6-2.
Among the highlights for the Bears was a solid first quarter during which the Dolores defense held strong and yielded just six points.
Keying several defensive stands was Bears linebacker Kellen Gatzke, who finished the game with 26 total tackles and one fumble recovery. According to Bears head coach Chris Trusler, Gatzke is just 24 tackles shy of the school record for tackles in a season.
"In the beginning of the game, we stopped them and they stopped us," said Trusler. "We were going head to head with them. Then things kind of broke loose."
According to Trusler, size and skill proved to be the difference as Monte Vista led 20-0 at halftime and 26-7 at the end of the third quarter.
Providing a second-half highlight for the Bears was a successful fake punt, which saw Gatzke throw a 21-yard pass to Dustin Beltran on 4th and 10. Later in the drive, quarterback Jalen Balderrama scored the Bears lone touchdown.
"Last year against Monte Vista, we were in the negative in total yards," said Trusler. "This game, against possibly the toughest team we've played, we completed more passes than we had in any game all year."
Overall, the Bears amassed 96 yards of total offense, which included 62 yards passing and 34 yards rushing.
Next up for Dolores will be a road matchup against Ignacio High School, which will take place at 7 p.m. on Oct. 24. Ignacio will enter the game with a 1-7 record.
(Ignacio) has a great ability to pass the ball," said Trusler. "We need to keep that in mind and not be overly aggressive on the run. It's definitely a winnable game."