This season the Reed Raiders have scored points, a lot of them!
56 in a win over Galena
63 in a win over Douglas
21 in a loss to Bishop Manogue
66 in a win over McQueen
56 in a win over Hug
24 in a loss to Reno
28 in a loss to Spanish Springs
63 in a win over Douglas
The Raiders averaged 47 points per game, excluding the two games against Damonte this season. In the games against Damonte, the Raiders averaged 9 points per game. That is a 38-point difference, credit the Damonte defense for what they have accomplished this season.
Back in week one, at Granite Bay (CA), the Mustangs gave up 25 points in a loss; since then they have given up a meager 12 points per game. Wednesday night, at Damonte, in a Northern 4A semi-final game, Damonte’s defense rose to the occasion.
Damonte received the opening kickoff and marched right down the field, taking a 7-0 lead after a 21-yard touchdown pass from Ethan Kulpin to Nick Vargas. It was 4th down and Kulpin threw a beautiful pass to Vargas in the west corner of the north end zone. After the ensuing kickoff, the defense forced the Raiders to punt, giving the Mustangs the ball at their own six-yard line. The Mustangs marched down the field and Hayes scored from the one-yard line, making the score 14-0.
In the second quarter, the Raiders tried to shift the momentum, putting together a drive the Damonte defense ended at their own 19-yard line. It was 4th down, the ball Raiders kept it on the ground, and the Mustangs made the stop. The Mustangs took the ball down the field ad Hayes walked it in from ten yards out, making it 21-0 after Benny Marshall's point after kick. Later in the second quarter the Damonte defense came up with an interception, the ball was tipped by Christian Jamison and intercepted by Nick Vargas. Hayes would punch it in from the 2-yard line making it 28-0.
The Raiders did score on the opening drive of the third quarter, give credit to Elijah Tau Tolliver, who provided a spark for the Raiders on the drive. The extra point was missed, making the score 28-6. The Raiders forced the Mustangs to punt and moved the ball down to Damonte’s 34-yard line, however, the Mustangs defense came up with another big 4th down stop. In the 4th quarter the Raiders drove down to the Damonte goal line, but the Mustangs defense came up with a huge 4th down stop, giving their offense the ball on the three-yard line. The Mustangs took the clock down to less than two minutes with their final drive before turning it over on downs deep on the Reed end of the field. The Raiders came out firing on that last drive and did score on a long pass play as the clock struck zeroes. The final score, 28-12, Mustangs.
Damonte’s defense is special. They have played exceptionally well in the biggest games of the season: home for Reno in the regular season, at Reed, at Bishop Manogue, at Galena, the home playoff game with Reno, and the home playoff game with Reed. In those games the defense has allowed an average of 12 points per game.
Up Next – a rematch with the Bishop Manogue Miners. The two teams met on October 4th at Bishop Manogue; the Mustangs left with a 27-10 victory. The Miners were without starting quarterback Drew Scolari. Since then the Miners have won six straight and will be well rested for Monday night's game, coming off a nine-day preparation period, having played their semi-final game back on November 15th. Kickoff at Reno High is scheduled for 6:00 PM, Damonte will be the home team.