Wednesday, November 26, 2008

State championship berth is at stake Saturday for Belen

Class 4A semifinal in Aztec at 2 p.m.

Jason W. Brooks News-Bulletin Staff Writer; jbrooks@news-bulletin.com

Belen Five years to the day after their last opportunity to get to a state championship game, the Belen Eagle football team will get another try — facing the same opponent that edged them in the state semifinals in 2003.

The site of that dramatic overtime semifinal was Belen High School, and that's exactly why the Eagles must now travel to Fred Cook Memorial Stadium in Aztec for a 2 p.m. Class 4A state semifinal game on Saturday.

Since the two teams met in Belen the last time they faced each other in the playoffs, Aztec will be the site as the two teams face off for the right to meet either Goddard or Artesia in the 4A championship game on Dec. 5 or 6.

The Eagles earned their semifinal berth with an impressive 26-7 home win over the Silver Colts last Friday, dominating with a smothering defense and moving the ball on offense when they really needed to. The win was Belen's first playoff victory since 2005, and it set up a rematch with the Aztec (11-0) team that beat Belen 43-20 at BHS on Sept. 5.

"We're so much better going into our 12th game than we were in week two," said Belen's first-year coach, John Lerma. "Especially our defense."

The Eagles and Aztec were involved in one of the most intense, highly attended games in BHS history. On Nov. 29, 2003, the teams met at BHS in the 4A semifinals, with Aztec having almost as potent an offense as it has in 2008.

The teams battled in a seemingly endless game on a very muddy field (BHS still had natural grass then), with Belen fumbling near the Tiger goal line in overtime. Aztec prevailed, 32-26, though the Tigers were hammered the next week at Artesia in the 4A championship game.

Aztec also scored 34 and then 60 points in dismantling the Eagles' defense in 2006 and 2007 regular-season wins. The focus will be on the Belen secondary, as the Tigers' offense possesses 4A's leading passer, sophomore Brycson King, and leading rusher, senior Mike Hathcock.

Though the Eagles' rushing trio of Dylan Barba, Danny Jaramillo and Clovis Rivera has been impressive, Belen hasn't quite put up the numbers of Aztec. The Tigers only had one winning margin as low as 17 points, and have five wins by 40 points or more.

Much of the Eagles' success in slowing down the Aztec passing game will depend on how well the Belen cornerbacks perform. Junior Elias Esperanza, in his first full year as a starter, knows how important it will be to play both intensely and intelligently.

"We've got to read pass vs. run better," Esperanza said. "It's not going to be easy, and we've got to have high intensity."

The Eagle secondary got good news Monday when safety Orlando Castillo walked in smiling with a doctor's note, clearing him to return to action after missing the Silver game with an illness.

Belen Schools athletic coordinator Jim Danner said he would like thank the community for supporting BHS football this season, especially with turnout and the vocal nature of the crowd at the Silver game.

Momentum from

beating Silver?

Early in Friday's win over the Colts, it seemed like both teams had some early jitters. Each team lost a first-quarter fumble, and the game was scoreless until the Colts got on the board midway through the second period.

Barba, the Eagle quarterback, suffered what first appeared to be a serious shoulder injury on his non-throwing side in the first quarter, but he left the game for a few offensive series. The Eagle offense sputtered in his absence, and an Eagle fumble led to a short touchdown run by Silver quarterback Cody Clifton.

Barba returned later in the half to help lead his team down the field for its first score. His shoulder isn't seriously injured, Lerma said, and the sophomore is expected to suit up Saturday.

Aided by a 27-yard run by Barba that had a 15-yard late hit penalty tacked on, the Eagles tied the game 7-7 on a nice second-effort run by Danny Jaramillo. Rivera would score on a 44-yard scamper up the middle later in the quarter, and the Eagles led 14-7 at the half.

Defense played a prominent role in the win. After Jaramillo scored on another short run, Jayson Gurule, playing safety in place of the absent Castillo, capped the scoring with a 22-yard interception return early in the fourth quarter.

Rivera had 125 rushing yards Friday, though the Eagles had only 198 yards in the game, all on the ground. The Eagle defense gave up a few first downs here and there, but it kept the Colts out of the end zone on every drive except the one that started Belen's 2-yard line.

The Eagle defense will likely have to keep the Aztec offense off the field more than BHS did with Silver. Aztec outgained Belen 482-268 in the Sept. 5 game, including several big plays. It was the last time the Eagles lost before their current nine-game winning streak began.

"One thing is that we can't give up the big play, a big run or a long pass," said Lerma. "We have to be at our best, because they're so explosive."

Aztec has scored 546 points this season, 65 short of La Cueva's state-record output in 2004. In Saturday's 42-8 home win over Los Alamos, a team Belen struggled to beat, the Tigers outgained the Hilltoppers 461-218, but King threw three interceptions. The Tiger defense limited Hilltopper standout running back Raul Rodriguez to 20 yards on nine carries.

Tickets for the semifinal are only available at Aztec High School, and only on Saturday. The prices are $5 for students and senior citizens, $8 for everyone else, cash only.

Rivera said he hopes a large crowd makes the trip to Aztec.

"A big crowd means a lot," he said. "It means you have support from everyone."

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