It’s undefeated, top-ranked Raton again at St. Michael’s

Well, thanks to that state home and away rule regarding who played who, where, when, St. Michael’s will play host to Raton again in Saturday afternoon‘s 3A football semifinals.

It didn’t matter that the undefeated, top-ranked Tigers already played at the Horsemen’s Christian Brothers Athletic Complex during the regular season.

Raton won that one 14-0, but it didn’t matter because only the playoffs count in deciding who plays when and where. And so because the last time Raton and St. Michael’s met in the state tournament, it was in 2019 and at the Tigers’ home field.

And so the 4th-seeded Horsemen’s 34-14 quarterfinals win over visiting 5th-seeded New Mexico Military Institute Saturday afternoon, will keep them home again. They save the 3-hour trip, save at (Joe Biden’s increased gas pumps) and get home field advantage.

Either way, the Tigers will be favored. They rolled over 6th-seeded Albuquerque Hope Christian, 49-14, on their home turf Saturday afternoon to advance to 11-0 and reign supreme over their class.

And St. Michael’s upped its mark to 8-3, with the losses coming against the Tigers, 3rd-seeded Robertson, and 6A rival and neighbor Santa Fe High School.

The win over NMMI wasn’t as easy as the final score would indicate. It was close for awhile. The teams were scoreless over the opening quarter, but St. Michael’s tallied back-to-back touchdowns and were on top 14-0 at the intermission.

The Horsemen never trailed, but the upset-minded Colts did trim the gap to 14-7, shortly after halftime, and after St. Michael’s scored again but failed on the point-after attempted by senior Milena Keene, also the goalkeeper for the girls soccer team, and after the visitors scored again, they made their PAT and it was now 20-14.

But that’s as close as they would come, with no more points on the scoreboard as the home team took charge from there.

From Roswell, where Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach played for NMMI and where the late country singer John Denver was born, once the home side got into gear, it became too tough to stay with it, and the visitors rode home with their season ending at 8-3.

With junior Zachery Martinez at quarterback, Joey Fernandez’ team mixed it up with its balanced, patented ground game, and Martinez, who got the call when four-year starting quarter Lucas Coriz suffered a season-ending knee injury in the early part of game one that required surgery, and after Fernandez  tried several players to take over the position, Martinez became the signal-caller.

In this game Keene made five of six point-afters and the red-clad Colts never scored again.

Along the ground, Horsemen senior Daymon Lujan paved the way by carrying the ball 24 times for 103 yards, and despite a pair of fumbles, scored twice.

As for NMMI, it did have a small, but big talented starting quarterback in junior Juan Badillo, and despite an early ankle injury, he still managed to engineer the offense.

He ran the option well, but wasn’t the same with his obvious limp. He also showed a strong arm, but also had one sure TD pass dropped in the end zone by senior Jaikayo Brown, and it then became a struggle in the game, with less experience, depth and size not in NMMI’s corner.

Senior Isaiah Salazar brought some excitement to the home crowd when he returned a punt 99 yards, and later on picked off a Badillo pass. Flores reeled in his touchdown pass from on a 33-yard Martinez throw, and he sped

77 yards on a kickoff return.

Despite never leading, the Colts hung in there, never quit. They played with their top player, the 5-foot-8, 143-pound Badillo hampered first by the ankle injury and later by a sore knee, but no matter how he was hurting, he was always trying to take of business.

He managed to gain some ground running the ball, but nothing like he did all season when he avoided injuries, played on both sides of the line, and just ran the show, but after the 6-point deficit became bigger, it became a tougher chore although head coach Randy Montoya had no choice, for he had no true back-up QB, and each time he checked with Badillo he was waved off and in went his bundle of versatility while hurting and still providing the leadership.

Now Raton comes to the City Different again. it is equally adept on offense and defense. On offense, there’s the one-two punch of junior running back Cayden Walton and senior quarterback Dylan Quartieri.

The Tigers, like any small school, relies on their players going both ways, and that has also been their strength as Walton also plays free safety and Quartieri outside linebacker.

If St. Michael’s was sans a quality back-up quarterback when the teams played earlier, it might be in better shape now, but to tame the Tigers, it needs to put together a big game, as in scoring more than the previous meeting. That wasn’t a runaway, but Raton did have the upper hand than, but home field is home field and that’s where the Horsemen will be once again.

That alone probably brings more confidence, except these Tigers have won home and away via blow outs and tight tussles, as in the 28-26 win over visiting Robertson, 14-7 triumph at West Las Vegas, and 14-0 at St. Michael’s.

In the other 3A games Saturday, 3rd-seeded Robertson again disposed of crosstown rival West Las Vegas, the 6th-seed, 27-6, and 2nd-seeded Socorro eliminated 8th-seeded Dexter, 40-0, so Saturday afternoon it will be the Warriors (8-2) at the Cardinals (8-2) in the other semis.

In 4A, 4th-seeded Moriarty held off visiting 5th-seeded Albuquerque Academy, 20-14, and 2nd-seeded Bloomfield rolled over visiting 7th-seeded Valencia,  48-13. Top-seeded Lovington turned back 8th-seed Silver, 27-7, and 8th-seeded Ruidoso hit the road and surprised 3rd-seeded Albuquerque St. Pius X., 20-10.

This lines up Saturday afternoon‘s 4A semis, with Moriarty at Lovington and Ruidoso at Bloomfield.

In 5A, No. 1-seed, unbeaten Farmington (11-0) downed visiting 8th-seeded Santa Teresa, 28-6, 4th-seeded Artesia topped visiting Mayfield, 24-17, Roswell Goddard, the 6th-seed, won the clash of city rivals by upending Roswell High, 14-3, and also-undefeated and 2nd-seeded Los Lunas  (11-0) ousted the visitors from 7th-seeded Belen, 33-13.

Now it’s the 5A semis Saturday afternoon, with Farmington at Artesia and Goddard at Los Lunas.

In 6A, top seed Rio Rancho Cleveland won handily over 8th-seeded and visiting Hobbs, 27-7, No. 2 seeded Rio Rancho High came back from an early gap to eliminate 9th-seeded Cibola, 44-20, it was 3rd-seeded Albuquerque La Cueva, at home, ending visiting 6th-seeded Albuquerque Volcano Vista’s season with a 44-20 romp, and visiting 5th-seeded Las Cruces came away with a 24-14 win over Clovis rival, 4th-seeded Centennial.

And unlike the other semis, now it will be two Friday night games in 6A, with the unbeaten Storm (11-0) playing at Las Cruces, and the Rams (10-1) home to La Cueva in 7 o’clock starts.

All the other groups have Saturday afternoon tilts, with 1 o’clock the scheduled kickoff times.

In 2A, it’s down to a title game Saturday afternoon matching top-seeded Jal (9-1) versus the visitors from 3rd-seeded Eunice after Jal pounded visiting 4th-seeded Texico, 53-12, and Eunice (8-2) knocked out previously undefeated, 2nd-seeded Tularosa, 24-20.

And in regard to the incorrect headline on the Sunday New Mexican sports pages, cross out Robertson at St. Michael’s and insert instead the Raton trip down I-25 South, and the Tigers, who call Tiger Circle home, sure know the way to Santa Fe.

As for the other classes, the next stop will be for state championships.