Bobcats squeak out 32-3A victory over Pirates in overtime

RIO HONDO — Rocky James will take a win anytime.

But if his defense has a big hand in it, it’s that much more special.

The Bobcats head coach saw his squad dodge bullets all night but stand their ground as they rallied to beat Hidalgo 20-14 on Friday night at Bobcat Stadium. The win is the third straight for Rio Hondo (3-4 overall, 3-1 district), which is tied with Zapata for second place in District 32-3A.

“I knew we could play defense like this,” said James, the Bobcats’ defensive coordinator before taking over last season as head coach. “The kids fought back and the team that came out in the second half was not the team from the first half.

“This is a big win for our morale heading into next week (at Raymondville),” he said. “The kids came out and reached down deep into their hearts and played hard tonight.”

Hidalgo (3-4, 2-2) went up 14-0 early, but miscues, namely in the kicking game, cost them for the second straight week.

“We’ve just gotta make plays,” Hidalgo head coach Robin Kirk said. “Give Rio Hondo credit, they made the plays and we didn’t.”

Up 14-6 in the second quarter, the Pirates drove down to the Rio Hondo 18 and missed a field goal. Then another chance to pad the lead came up empty in the third after a 30-yard miss, allowing the Cats to hang around.

“We’ve got to make field goals,” Kirk said. “We’ve missed five in two weeks and they’ve been game-changers.”
Hidalgo went up thanks to a TD pass from Kevin Trevino to Gino Quiroz (49 yards) and the QB later added a two-yard plunge.

Rio Hondo answered in the second when Trevor David darted in from 13 yards out. The PAT was missed with 10:11 before intermission. After the missed field goal try in the third after a 14-play drive, the Cats buckled down on D to force three Pirate punts the rest of the way.

That was all the Cats’ offense needed.

With 3:01 left, Alan Garza (11 carries, 107 yards) dashed in for a five-yard TD. Isaiah De la Cruz hit Mario Rodriguez for the conversion to tie it up.

After the final stop on D, the Cats went for the win with three ticks left, but Max Castillo’s 40-yarder was blocked as time expired.

In the extra stanza, Rio Hondo scored first in OT when De la Cruz ran in from five yards out. The PAT was no good.

Then it was up to the defense, and they withstood a long pass play and then stuffed the run and one more pass to seal the victory.