Loving overwhelms Rattlers

The Falcons were just too much.

Loving's front line largely dominated Tucumcari during a 44-3 Rattlers loss Friday in front of a Homecoming crowd of more than 1,000 at Rattler Stadium.

The Rattlers (0-4) totaled barely 100 yards in offense and turned the ball over three times on interceptions. Loving defenders made 12 tackles for loss and besieged Tucumcari starting quarterback Nick Goen, who scored his team's only points on a 21-yard field goal in the second quarter.

"We had a good week in practice and were prepared," THS coach Doug South said. "They were just better than us. We didn't do a real good job picking up blocks. They physically beat us up."

Loving (3-1) racked up more than 300 yards rushing. Running back Bobby Parraz totaled 151 yards on 14 carries and scored two touchdowns. Quarterback Tristen Onsurez ran for 127 yards on 14 carries for two touchdowns and added a third TD on a 65-yard punt return.

Loving coach Tyler Finch agreed his team's linemen were the key to the game.

"We preach to these guys that it starts up front on both sides of the ball," he said. "They take pride in that. And they really do a good job of motivating each other, working hard in practice and then really executing.

"It's one of those jobs that's not always the most glorified job on the field, but they do a good job staying together and playing tough."

Finch said he made his players aware the Rattlers might be more motivated because of Homecoming.

"Anytime you play a team and it's their Homecoming game, you know they're going to be a little bit more excited for that," he said. "And they've been doing a good job. They've been improving every week. We've seen that on film.

"Once we settled in, we felt like we were able to execute and kind of run our offense and defensive schemes the way we want to."

It took a while for the Falcons to get going. A penalty stalled their first drive (Loving totaled 80 yards in penalties), and Onsurez didn't find much success passing, going 2-for-13 for 16 yards during the game.

With about five minutes left in the first quarter, Onsurez found a seam on a keeper and slithered through Tucumcari's defense for a 41-yard touchdown. Parraz ran in the two-point conversion for an 8-0 Falcons lead.

A penalty for a late hit out of bounds by Tucumcari set up Loving's second TD. Onsurez ran it in from 9 yards out, and he completed a pass for a two-point conversion for a 16-0 lead.

Loving's defensive linemen nullified Tucumcari's running game to just 16 yards and gave Goen little time to throw. He completed 4-of-8 passes for 67 yards (all to Luis Archuleta) and two interceptions.

One of those picks near midfield helped set up Loving's third TD. Parraz scored on a 3-yard plunge for a 22-0 lead early in the second period.

An 18-yard run by Tucumcari's Daymion Urioste drew a 15-yard facemark penalty by Loving, giving the Rattlers a first down on Loving's 7-yard line.

But a fumble on snap and Urioste being tackled behind the line led to a loss of yardage.

Goen gained 8 yards on a keeper, giving Tucumcari a fourth-and-goal on the 4-yard line.

South elected to take the points, and Goen kicked the field goal to put Tucumcari on the board with 1:28 before halftime.

With 20 seconds left before intermission, Loving had a first down on Tucumcari's 8-yard line but was unable to score due to its ineffective passing.

Loving scored on its first possession of the second half, going 82 yards on six plays. Parraz notched the touchdown with a 2-yard run, and Onsurez scored the two-point conversion for a 30-3 advantage.

Onsurez took a Tucumcari punt and returned down the right side 65 yards for a touchdown with 2:42 left in the third period. The Falcons led 38-3.

Goen suffered an ankle injury in the third quarter, pressing Alijah Martinez into the quarterback slot for a second straight game.

Martinez went 3-for-4 passing for 28 yards, but one of his incompletions was an interception near midfield.

That helped set up Loving's final TD - a 1-yard run - midway through the fourth quarter.

Tucumcari hosts another non-district home game at 7 p.m. Friday against Cuba, which South described as a "winnable" game. Valencia blasted Cuba 54-0 on Friday, dropping the Rams to 0-4.