Did Covina’s Devonte Bevel make it out of the end zone? Photo by Joe T.
By Joe Torosian
“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”
It’s the last line from “The Great Gatsby”…It’s not overly optimistic but hopeful. Kind of like a Zero Week football game. No matter the outcome, it shouldn’t create a false expectation but it should at least give you some hope.
That wasn’t the case Saturday night at Covina District Field at the conclusion of the Arroyo-Covina, 17-17 tie. Instead of hope, you were left with the same feeling you might get at the end of “The Heart of Darkness.”
“The horror, the horror.”
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The Knights gave the ball away seven times, twice in the last three minutes, once at the Colts two, and the last time with 10-seconds left at the one.
Arroyo quarterback Jason Villa was 25 of 39 for 288 yards through the air. He had two touchdowns and two picks.
Devin Knight was leading receiver with 10 grabs for 100 yards and Steven Ocariz lead team with 48 yards on 13 carries.
The Knights first two possessions of the game were highlight reels. The first ended with a 27-yard pass, over the top, to Rey Cotero. Then, after Covina, responded with a tying touchdown, Villa went over the top again. This time, he hit Yezdan Marquez to make it a 14-7 game.
Here, Colts defensive coordinator Martin Bacon’s unit woke up and Knights’ offensive coordinator, Chris MacMillan’s squad closed up shop.
Arroyo’s next three possessions ended with a fumble, turnover, and fumble. The fourth (if we can count that as a possession) possession ended on a fumbled punt return, and the fifth ended with a punt.
In between all this Knights’ linebacker Manuel Santana had a pick-six return called back due to a roughing the passer call.
Arroyo’s first possession of the second half, ninth of the game, ended with an interception.
Its tenth was short-circuited by a fumbled snap that they did recover but forced them to punt.
The Colts added a 28-yard field goal to make it 14-10 midway through the third quarter.
The Knights suffered another punt and a turnover on downs before Jesse Ortiz nailed 26-yard field goal to make the score 17-10 with 7:56 remaining.
Covina’s Tristan Sprague returned the kickoff 30-yards to his team’s 45 and just when Arroyo looked like it was going to get off the field they were hit with another roughing the passer call and then holding.
With 5:56 to play, the Colts Devonte Bevel went 13-yards to tied the contest.
For a moment it seemed like the Knights offense woke up. Beginning at their 22, they used nine plays to advance all the way to the Colts seven. Facing a third and six, Villa rolled right and then headed for the end zone but was stripped along the way.
Taking possession at the two, the Colts were quickly forced into a third and 11. The ball went to Bevel who was stopped twice, it appeared, in the end zone but was able to break past the goal line to avoid the safety.
The Arroyo defense got angry, words were spoken, and a 15-yard penalty flag was thrown for unsportsmanlike conduct.
Three plays later and with 35 seconds left on the clock, Covina’s Anthony Meneses was intercepted by the Knights’ Marquez.
A 17-yard pass from Villa to Knight pushed the ball to the 13. Then a 12-yard pass to Daniel Martinez took it to the one. Then disaster struck again, Villa lost the ball on a play going left…The Colts recovered and the game ended in a tie.
The horror, the horror
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