With the season slowly coming to an end, Ayala’s Boys Varsity Football was faced with playing their last away game of the regular season against a formidable foe in the Damien Spartans. Games between Damien and Ayala go way back, with the earliest record of the two playing going back to 2004. Coaches and players over the years have built a rivalry between the two teams, both once major powerhouses. With the Bulldogs on the road for this matchup, it would prove to be a factor in the game play and overall outcome.
Kickoff started at 7:00 p.m, and the stakes were high as Ayala hoped to put a hole in Damien’s league championship journey. The Spartans looked to put a beating on a low record Ayala team. With each team’s first drives it had looked like the game would be relatively close, Ayala receiving first and going on a monster drive to score a touchdown. Not soon after, Damien’s strong offense had a one play drive for a touchdown, but failed a fake point after touchdown (PAT) attempt. The first quarter was the most promising drive for the Bulldogs in a long time, being up for the first time since week one against Desert Pines.
The second quarter, however, marked the end of this run for Ayala with Damien starting to lay on the points with huge throws and runs. The Bulldog’s defense did not seem to have an answer for the Spartan’s offense, as they started rolling down the field, putting up 11 points to conclude their first half. On the other hand, Ayala showed faults on the offense and were unable to compile another successful drive like they had to start the game. Going into halftime with the score being 7-17, both teams felt the weight of what could occur with such a close game.
Coming back from the half, Damien received the second half kickoff. Ayala’s defense was poised to show their magic, finding their grounding the past couple weeks against other notably strong offensive teams. However, similar to the second quarter, the scoring would not dry up. Damien’s offense did not miss a beat, putting up three touchdowns against the Bulldogs defense. Ayala’s offense did not respond, as they were shut down by the Spartans defense. By the end of the third quarter, the score was 7-38 with a quarter left to go.
By the time of the fourth quarter, the scoring had subsided. Damien did not put up any more points and Ayala was unable to find the right path of action to execute. The ending score would be 7-38 in favor of the Spartans, holding Ayala futile in their endeavor to get a win in their league.
The Bulldog’s last game of the season is this Friday, November 1. This will be the last home game for the Bulldogs, also marking their Senior Night and hope to beat another defeated team in league, Etiwanda High School.
