Griz lose heart-breaker 29-28

You won’t meet many people who are more optimistic than football coach Chase Pometta.

Mariposa County High School’s varsity football coach held his head high following his team’s frustrating finish at Amador last Friday evening, a game in which the Grizzlies fell 29-28. He said his team will grow and get better from the experience.

“This is a game that will help sharpen things up and was the type of atmosphere you will get in November and December (during the playoffs),” said Pometta. “They held their heads high … After the game they were more interested in what was the next step (to get better). Nobody was feeling sorry for ourselves.”

The Grizzlies were leading by two touchdowns in the second half, and things seemed to be going according to plan. Then everything that could go wrong seemed to go wrong.

Amador recovered an onside kick that Mariposa mishandled and then minutes later, the Grizzlies were also hurt by a bad snap that Amador recovered.

Amador scored to cut Mariposa’s lead to 28-27, but went for a two-point conversion and converted to take a 29-28 lead.

Even on that play, Amador fumbled the ball but landed on it in the end zone for the successful two-point try. It was like the “football gods” were conspiring against the Grizzlies.

“That’s a game we should have won. The confidence that will come from that (learning experience) and the adjustments we will make will serve us well,” Pometta stated.

Even after the two-point conversion, Mariposa got the ball back with less than a minute left on its own 15-yard line with no timeouts. MCHS quarterback Austin Battles orchestrated a nice drive, getting the Grizzlies within field goal range in the final moments.

Unfortunately, the kick hooked left and the Grizzlies came away fruitless.

“It’s well within our kicker’s range,” said Pometta. “It happens.”

Pometta said if his team replayed the game 100 times and was in the same scenario, “I’m not even batting an eye and doing anything different.” He would trust his kicker each time.

“You’re lining up and kicking that field goal (every time),” he said he told his kicker following the game.

“The game never comes down to one thing. It seems like it does as a fan … but there were so many things leading up to it,” he said.

Mariposa’s Rusty Bull racked up 227 all-purpose yards to lead the way. Bull carried an eye-popping 28 times for 207 yards and three touchdowns.

Ezekiel Weiland carried once for a 27-yard touchdown, while Lyell Marcis took the ball two times for 15 yards, and Manuel Siller carried four times for 23 yards.

Battles finished 6-of-11 for 131 yards and an interception. Brady Martin was the leading receiver with three catches for 81 yards. Weiland had one catch for 30 yards.

“A couple slip-ups, a couple missteps really dictates the win or the loss. At the end of the day, we had the ball on the 15-yardline. We had it where we wanted it and missed the field goal, but we still put ourselves in position to win the game,” Pometta explained.

Amador’s Silas Peckinpaugh carried the ball 12 times for 128 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Pometta called the showdown with Amador a “high level” football game and praised his players for their competitiveness.

Amador improved to 2-1. MCHS fell to 2-1 and is now ready to welcome league foe Gustine to town on Friday, Sept. 25 at 7:15 p.m.

Pometta said his team is excited for its first home game and to not have to travel on a bus for several hours. He said his coaches are already installing a game plan he feels confident in.

“The guys put in a good plan for practice,” he said.

Pometta said Gustine is a tough opponent and one that can throw unorthodox situations at opponents.

“They run a certain style of offense that tries to drain the clock. They run a similar style as Amador does, so I feel we have a bit of a head start as far as preparation,” said Pometta.

Pometta said Gustine’s style can “give you fits and it works.” He mentioned Gustine won’t be afraid to try onside kicks, go for two-point conversions and go for it on fourth down situations.

“They use all 40 seconds on the play clock, every single play. They try to shorten the game, and it’s worked for them,” he said.

Pometta pointed to a game against Stone Ridge Christian a few seasons ago where Gustine unexpectedly knocked them off by using the tactics mentioned.

He called them “well-coached” and said that on tape they are an aggressive group of players.

“It’s going to be a fun game. We are happy to be home for it,” he said.

The game will serve as MCHS’s Alumni Night celebration. Former varsity players will be honored prior to the game and throughout the evening.