The Casa Grande Gaucho defense proved to be too strong for the home team Friday night. With a light rain falling during the game, the Hounds couldn’t keep their offense on track against the more dominant Gauchos, losing their final regular season game at Rec Park 31-13.
The evening started with the and families. However, the festive atmosphere didn’t continue. Interceptions, fumbles and backfield tackles stymied the Hounds throughout the night.
6’2”, 260 lb, junior running back Elijah Qualls made the first of his two Casa rushing touchdowns mid-way through the first quarter, giving the Gauchos a lead they never surrendered. A decisive factor during the game, Qualls ran 23 times for 119 yards.
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The Gauchos led at the half 25-0 following a outstanding catch by Cole Boggs. With 39 seconds left on the clock, the junior wide receiver made a leaping, one-handed catch deep in the end zone.
The third quarter was a defensive struggle, with neither team able to put any points on the board.
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Unable to put much pressure on Casa’s quarterback, the Hound secondary made several key plays throughout the game, causing fumbles and interceptions that kept the Gaucho’s from putting even more points on the board.
After having several strong drives stopped during the game, the Hounds finally scored with 8:31 left in the fourth quarter. Starting on their own 20 yard line following a deep Casa punt, senior quarter back Max Opperman threw a screen pass to running back Gerardo Cervantes. Dodging tacklers, Cervantes raced to the goal. The 80-yard run brought the score to 25-6. Healdsburg missed the extra point conversion try.
Later in the quarter, sophomore quarterback JaJuan Lawson scored the final Casa touchdown on a perfectly executed option play, rushing around the right end for a 30 yard score. Lawson went 13 of 18 for 288 yards on the night.
Healdsburg senior wide receiver answered Casa with a 65 yard kick-off return, scoring Healdsburg’s second and final touchdown of the night. The final four minutes of the game ended with the teams trading the ball on downs, neither able to make a strong drive.
Both teams end the season at 7-3 (4-2 league) with Casa holding the second place spot and Healdsburg right behind them in third in the SLC standings. Now they wait to see how they stand in the play-off schedule.
