SantaFeToday.com Santa Fe’s Hometown News
By Arnie Leshin
Though shall not pass became St. Michael’s ground game in coming away with Saturday night‘s 39-30 victory up at Taos.
Through the years head coach Joey Fernandez’ forward pass has been the bulk of his offense, but this time it was the one-two punch of Mathias Duran and Cole Sandoval that turned the tide in the comeback opening triumph.
Fact is the Horsemen completed only two passes all game before turning the offense over to its running backs led by Duran and Sandoval.
Duran bulldozed his was to four touchdowns and Fernandez wasn’t surprised.
“He’s dangerous,” said the coach now in his 21st year at the helm. “He is once he gets going, then again the hard part is getting him going.”
It was Duran who opened the scoring with a 25-yard burst up the middle and the point-after made it 7-0. In the second quarter, Soren Annon went a long way, as in racing 84 yards into the end zone and it was now 14-0.
But the Tigers managed to tie it, first on Noah Washington’s acrobatic one-handed reception and the other on a stellar catch by Lionel Salazar’s in which he landed backwards in the end zone.
Horsemen quarterback Reed Bass had a dismal start through the air, going 0-for-5 in the first half before completing his first varsity pass in the third quarter.
But he settled down and ran four yards to stop a 22-0 Taos run and get St. Michael’s back in the game.
Said Duran: “You know Cole, Soren, Isaiah Dominguez, these guys are tough running the ball, and have guys who can get things done when we need to.”
As for Duran, his next three TD carries were for 35, 43 and 18 yards, the last one serving as the back-breaker with four minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Fernandez agreed with his new found strength along the ground. He said his rushing attack thing could become his team’s identify until Bass and the passing game figures things out.
“And that’s just fine by me,” he added. “We’ve got a bunch of kids who can make things happen when we get the ball so I’m good with where we are.”
Duran thought halftime kind of saved them, that the team was sort of struggling on the road. But not for him, who had quite an opener.
Now the Horsemen get a visit Saturday afternoon from city rival Capital in a 1 o’clockkickoff at Christian Brothers Athletic Complex. The Jaguars come off a road win over Grants in their opener.
