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Coyotes fall to district-leading Tivy


The Uvalde Coyotes needed a near-perfect performance to have a chance at playing competitive football against one of the top teams in the state.
Entering the game at Kerrville Friday as three- to four-touchdown underdogs, the margin for error was extremely slim.
Kerrville Tivy’s Antlers proved why they will win a second consecutive district title and challenge for top state honors as they rolled to a 49-0 victory over the Coyotes.
The Antlers scored three times in the first period.
They built up a 35-0 halftime lead and added one touchdown in both the third period and the fourth period on the way to their lopsided victory.
By contrast, the Coyotes struggled to maintain offensive consistency.
They turned the ball over five times, including one fumble and four pass interceptions.
One of the interceptions was returned for a touchdown.
Uvalde’s other nine possessions in the game ended with a punt.
“We went up against a great football team. They are the defending district champions and are a highly-ranked team this season for a reason,” said Uvalde High School head football coach R.T. Gonzales.
“Tonight we made too many mistakes. You can’t beat an average team when you turn the football over five times and make some of the mistakes that we did,” said Gonzales. “Great teams like Tivy make you pay big for those turnovers and other mistakes.
“Hopefully, we learned something from this experience,” said Gonzales. “Hopefully, we can apply what we learned to help us win the majority of the next four games on our schedule.”
Tivy had possession of the football first in the game. Beginning at their 25-yard line, they put together an impressive 10-play, 75-yard drive that ended on a one-yard run by quarterback Trapper Pannell.
Up 7-0, the Antlers got the ball back less than a minute later when defensive lineman Dominic Jefferson covered a Uvalde fumble at the Coyotes 15-yard line.
Two plays later, Trapper Pannell fired a 30-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Brooks McCoy.
Three plays and a punt later, the Antlers took control of the ball at the Uvalde 47-yard line.
They drove the ball to the Uvalde eight but lost the ball on downs.
Three plays later, the Antlers scored when defensive back Jack Patterson returned a pass interception 41 yards for a touchdown.
On the first play of the second period, the Antlers scored on a 45-yard touchdown pass from Trapper Pannell to wide receiver Colten Drake.
Later in the period, safety Ryan De La Cruz intercepted a Travis Pannell pass to give the Coyotes the football at their 20-yard line.
But three plays later, Jack Patterson picked off his second Uvalde pass of the night to stop a Coyotes drive at the Tivy 22.
The Antlers moved the ball to the Uvalde 25, but lost control when a tipped pass was intercepted by Ryan De La Cruz.
Three plays and a punt later, Tivy began with the ball at the Uvalde 25.
They put together a four-play drive that ended on an 11-yard touchdown run by quarterback Cole Miears with 2:01 left in the first half.
Up 35-0, the Antlers scored late in the third period on a 50-yard touchdown pass from Trapper Pannell to Colten Drake.
Early in the fourth period, the Antlers scored their final touchdown of the ball game.
Cole Miears connected with Colton Drake for a 25-yard touchdown pass to cap a three-play, 66-yard drive.
Tivy dominated the game statistics.
The Antlers wound up with a big advantage over the Coyotes in first downs, 26-11, and in total offensive yards, 563-176.
Besides holding the Coyotes to under 200 total yards, the Antlers forced five turnovers.
One pass interception was returned for a touchdown, while another pass interception came in the end zone to stop a potential Uvalde touchdown.
Running back Sotero Martinez Jr. collected most of Uvalde’s yardage. He carried the ball 19 times for 97 yards.
Christian Rivera caught six passes for 49 yards and Tanner Bowman caught three passes for 29 yards.
Ryan De La Cruz intercepted three Tivy passes.
“It was a tough night for us. We have got to play better football,” said Coach R.T. Gonzales. “We have another key district game coming up next Friday, so there is no time to dwell on this game. We have to move forward.”
The Coyotes, now 1-2 in district play and 3-3 for the season, will go up against the Medina Valley Panthers, 1-2 and 2-4, in district action in the Honey Bowl next Friday.
Medina Valley trounced the Kennedy Rockets, 63-7, in competition Friday night at Castroville.
In other district games played Friday night, the Boerne Champion Chargers topped the Lockhart Lions, 41-17, while the Alamo Heights Mules walloped the Memorial Minutemen, 49-7.
With their wins, Champion and Alamo Heights pulled into a three-way tie with Lockhart for second place in the district standings. Medina Valley, Memorial, and the Coyotes are tied for fifth place, while Kennedy is in last place.
Following the Uvalde-Medina Valley game next Friday, the Coyotes will take on the Champion Chargers in a Thursday night game at Boerne on Oct. 24.

pete lunA|leader-newsDefensive safety Ryan De La Cruz (No. 7) jumps up and attempts to knock down a pass thrown by Tivy’s Trapper Pannell (No. 9). The football action took place during the first half of the District 28-5A football contest Friday night at Kerrville. De La Cruz intercepted three passes and was in on many tackles throughout the ball game.

pete lunA|leader-newsDefensive safety Ryan De La Cruz (No. 7) jumps up and attempts to knock down a pass thrown by Tivy’s Trapper Pannell (No. 9). The football action took place during the first half of the District 28-5A football contest Friday night at Kerrville. De La Cruz intercepted three passes and was in on many tackles throughout the ball game.

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