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Home / Sports News / Santa Fe High welcomed undefeated Bernalillo to Ivan Head Stadium on homecoming night Friday and sent the Spartans back down I-25 south with a stunning 17-15 setback in the non-district contest

Santa Fe High welcomed undefeated Bernalillo to Ivan Head Stadium on homecoming night Friday and sent the Spartans back down I-25 south with a stunning 17-15 setback in the non-district contest

By Arnie Leshin 
Arnie Leshin

Wonder what undefeated Bernalillo was thinking when its bus traveled north on 1-25 for Friday night’s non-district football game at Santa Fe High.?

Maybe its 4-0 record, maybe its scoring 92 points and allowing only six, maybe another big win would be a team record and make for another neat drive home, and maybe the Spartans were eager to keep abreast of unbeaten district foe Taos after the Tigers rolled over the Demons, 49-0, also at Ivan Head Stadium, the previous Friday.

But all Santa Fe High second-year head coach Andrew Martinez would say as his young squad prepared for Bernalillo: “Heck, my kids are looking forward to it, they just want to play.”

And so they did. They surprised on offence, overwhelmingly controlling possession time, and were led by senior running back Sammy Martinez and freshman quarterback Luc Jaramillo. Plus, despite 241 yards of penalties between the teams, the Demons kept the ball behind some stellar blocking in stunning the Spartans, 17-15, before the homecoming night crowd.

If the crowd didn’t expect this second win in the last three weeks, the confident home team started well with a first-quarter safety and upped the margin to 11-0 at halftime.

Sammy Martinez, the state wrestling champion as a sophomore, traded in the mats for the football field and was playing his first season. The Demons needed a quality running back and he was it. They needed young Jaramillo to learn how to handle the pressure.

They both responded. Sammy has not had a bad game and leads the team in rushing, Jaramillo came to life in the win at Espanola Valley that ended his team’s 37-game losing streak. He has showed he can run the option, he has improving his passing, and also his poise.

This time, Sammy showed his heels a number of times, scoring one touchdown and picking up 141 yards on 34 carries. Jaramillo was rushed, sacked four times, but his own defense did the same to Bernalillo senior quarterback Gutierrez, also sacking him four times and punishing the two-way standout with a run-pass offense that wore him down, which brought him his worse game of the season.

The Demons added to the first safety on Jaramillo’s 4-yard toss to tight end Trent Jones, and the scoreboard read 11-0 and set the stage for an entertaining halftime display. Plus, they added on another safety when downing Gutierrez in the end zone on a defensive rush, and those two points made the difference.

Possession was a big factor. Santa Fe High held the ball for 33 minutes while the Spartans had only 3:56 on offense to begin the fourth quarter, butthey made a stir to cut into the lead with back-to-back TDs. With 4:37 left on the clock, they used a 10-play 67-yard drive to score from 13 yards out, and the two-point PAT made it 17-8.

Not long after, the visitors were back in business, scoring with 5:58 remaimg, kicking the PAT, and trimming the deficit to 17-15. This came after Sammy sped 28 yards into the end zone to go up by nine points.

And that’s the way it ended. Santa Fe High did not panic, kept control of the ball, and when time was ticking down, Gutierrez was forced into a 63-yard field goal try that was short and to the right. And the Demons are now 2-3 with neighboring rival St. Michael’s (1-3) coming to Ivan Head Stadium Friday night.

And believe it, Andrew Martinez’ team has the best record of the Santa Fe schools. Better than the Horsemen, Capital, and Indian School. Nothing like turning in a stunning performance on homecoming night.

As for Capital, it played at Moriarty Friday night and left with a 38-12 non-district defeat. Indian School went on the road to Zuni and was routed, 49-0. At Robertson, the Cardinals won 33-24 in non-district play. Los Alamos just got past Gallup, 7-0, on the road in a non-district contest.

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