Sharyland pulls away during second half to defeat Hanna

MISSION — Similar to last season, Brownsville Hanna didn’t make it easy for the favored Sharyland Rattlers. The Golden Eagles’ offense tested the Rattlers’ secondary early and often but the latter walked away with a    37-29 win to open the season Friday at Rattler Stadium.

Rattlers coach Fred Sanchez was glad his team escaped with a win and contributed the tightness of the game to Hanna.

“Brownsville Hanna, they are a good football team,” Sanchez said. “Those two receivers, you don’t see anything a whole lot better than that. Their quarterback did a good job.”

Eagles quarterback Tito Perez threw for 249 yards in the game — 217 of those yards going to receivers Mike and Anthony Garza.

Rattlers running back Scottie Meyer, who caught five passes for 58 yards, enjoyed the challenge Hanna brought with it.

“It is always good to have times like this when diversity comes,” the senior said. “You really show what kind of team you are.”

Last year, Hanna (0-1) led Sharyland (1-0) 14-0 at halftime before giving up 21 answered in the second half to lose 21-14. Friday night, the Eagles were determined to go blow-for-blow with the sixth-ranked team in the Rio Grande Valley and led 21-14 for a brief time after tailback Angelo Quadalquivir scored on a 25-yard run with 3:37 left before halftime.

Only 22 seconds later, however, Sharyland tied the game when Bobby Moran (10-for-14, 114 yards, two TDs, one interception) found wide receiver Chris Zuniga for a 41-yard touchdown. The Rattlers took the lead for good when Joey Martinez connected on a 35-yard field goal that gave the home team a 24-21 edge at the half.

Rattlers halfback Ricky Mata (95 yards rushing, 61 yards receiving, four TDs) scored on two 4-yard runs in the second half to give Sharyland a 37-21 lead.

The Eagles got to within 37-29 with 5:22 left in the game when Perez found Mike Garza for a 3-yard TD pass.
Hanna was driving late and was inside the 20-yard line but ran out of time.

“We played better than we did last year,” Eagles coach Tom Chavez said. “Up until the end we had a chance to win.”