By Don Eskins
The 3-4 Carlsbad Cavemen, victims of a tight 41-40 overtime conference loss to the Organ Mountain Knights on October 4, will be looking to get back to .500 against the Alamogordo Tigers on Friday night, October 11, in the Cavern City. The kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Equally important for the Cavemen will be to etch another victory in their District 3/6A win column. Currently, they sit at 1-2 in conference play.
As a result of the loss, MaxPreps has dropped them to 13th among Class 6A teams this week. Heading into their clash with the Knights, they were ranked 10th.
The Tigers, ranked 17th, have posted a won-lost record of 1-6 in 2024. Following a 65-31 loss to the second-ranked Centennial Hawks on October 3, they’re 0-3 in district. Alamo has also dropped conference games to Hobbs 41-29 and Organ Mt. 18-10.
In common games played this year against Centennial and Organ Mt., Carlsbad High has scored 53 total points while giving up 76. Alamogordo has collected 45 points while allowing 79.
Face Off: CHS vs. Alamo
Senior quarterback Kason Perez will once again lead the Cavemen onto the field on Friday night. Perez has completed 117 of his 187 attempts for 1,588 yards this season, an average of 13.6 yards per completion. He’s also thrown 22 touchdowns with just six interceptions.
Top receivers for CHS have been Robert Castaneda, Eloy Lopez, and Eaven Leos. Castaneda has hauled in 33 catches for 534 yards and eight touchdowns. Lopez, just eight back, has 25 receptions for 314 yards and two touchdowns, while Leos has recorded 16 catches for 263 yards and three touchdowns.
Cavemen rushing leaders are: Brock Wright, 63 carries for 333 yards, an average of 5.3 yards per carry, and five touchdowns; Kason Perez, 43 carries for 201 yards, an average of 4.7 yards per carry, and three touchdowns; and Ian Sandoval, 128 yards on 18 carries, an average of 7.1 yards per carry.
Calling signals for the Tigers should be N. Best. Best, a junior, has made good on 41 of 68 attempts for 394 yards and eight touchdowns. He’s had four interceptions.
Also lining up behind the center could be J. Quinlan. Under center this season, he’s connected on 14 of 27 attempts for 149 yards with three interceptions.
Quinlan, along with M. Bryant Jr., have been Alamogordo’s top go-to receivers. Quinlan has hauled in 13 receptions for 126 yards and two touchdowns, while Bryant has registered 12 catches for 142 yards and two touchdowns.
Leading ball carrier for the Tigers has been Best. The Tiger quarterback has collected 658 yards on the ground on 114 carries for an average of 5.8 yards per tote. He’s scored three touchdowns. Close behind Best is senior D. Hergenreder who’s carried the ball 101 times for 546 yards, an average of 5.4 yards per carry. He’s also crossed the goal line four times.
Organ Mt. 41, Carlsbad 40
Carlsbad’s loss to Organ Mountain was a tough one to absorb, especially after having battled Organ Mt. so hard.
Down 14-0 after first-quarter play, the Cavemen rallied for three touchdowns in the second to take a 21-13 lead at the half. Trailing 34-31 in the fourth and final period of regulation play, CHS tied the game up at 34-34 on a 41-yard field goal by Lennon Ananins to send the game into overtime.
However, lady luck wasn’t with them in overtime. Following a Brock Wright score from 1 yard out, the Cavemen failed to make good on their conversion attempt, which opened the door for the Knights to pick up the victory. Organ Mt. scored, converted their point after, and the 41-40 win was theirs.
Defensively, Caveman Simon Rubio had a big night with 17 total tackles. Overall, the CHS junior registered five solo tackles and 12 assists. He also had one tackle for a loss.
Senior Diego Ramirez also carded a double-digit performance. On the night, he recorded four solo tackles and 10 assists for 14 total tackles.
Junior Ty Young hauled in an interception to log CHS’s lone takeaway. He also had five total tackles.
District 3/6A Standings
Team Dist. Yr. Rank
Las Cruces 3-0 5-2 5
Centennial 2-0 6-0 2
Org. Mt 2-1 3-4 15
Hobbs 1-1 3-3 9
Carlsbad 1-2 3-4 13
Clovis 0-2 0-6 21
Alamo 0-3 1-6 17
This week’s D3/6A Schedule:
Carlsbad vs. Alamogordo;
Centennial vs. Hobbs;
Clovis vs. Org. Mt;
Las Cruces Open.
Cavemen vs Org. Mt. Recap
CHS 00-21-07-06-06--40
OMHS 13-00-14-07-07--41
CHS Scoring:
2nd- K. Perez 41 yd. pass to
R. Castaneda, L. Ananins kick;
B. Wright 3 yd run, L. Ananins
kick; K. Perez 4 yd. pass to
E. Lopez, L. Ananins kick.
3rd- B. Wright 2 yd. run,
L. Ananins kick
4th- L. Ananins 32 yd. kick;
L. Ananins 41 yd kick
OT- B. Wright 1 yd run;
Game Summary
Game Stats C-bad Clovis
Rushing 90 140
Passing 3 55 205
Total Yds. 445 345
1st Downs 22 17
Turnovers 1 1
Penalties 13/103 8/113
Passing: K. Perez 22-35-355-
TD-int
Receptions: E. Lopez 7-110-
TD; R. Castaneda 5-87-TD;
E. Leos 6-62; B. Wright 1-55;
I. Sandoval 3/41
Rushing: B. Wright 15-53-3TD;
I. Sandoval 9-47
Defense Total Tackles:
S. Rubio 17-TFL; D. Ramirez 14;
C. McKibben 8; J. Duran 8; B.
Anderson 6-TFL; T. Young
5-int; J. C. Roberson 3; J.
Akwiembi- R. Sanchez- I.
Galtan-B. Lopez III- I. Almodovar-
2; L. Ananins- A. Rodriguiz-
A. Venegas 1.
Comments