The Bears fell to the Los Gatos Wildcats 21-14 in a tense game on Friday evening, marking their first home loss of the season.
Before the game, the Bears performed their ritual prayer and Haka dance led by junior Eva Ama and sophomore Sione Pahulu, setting high spirits for the team to take on the Wildcats.
Winning the coin flip and choosing to receive, the Bears set up their offense with senior quarterback Xander Eschelman passing. Quickly moving up the field from the 46-yard line, Eschelman made a short pass to Ama, who rushed through the middle, giving the Bears their first down of the quarter.
An attempt to move up further resulted in a 15-yard penalty for the Bears, setting them back at the 34-yard line, where Eschelman was immediately thrown down by the Wildcats’ defense. Junior Anthony Perez took the punt for the last down before the Wildcats settled in on offense.
Despite heavy defensive pressure from the Bears, Los Gatos was able to steadily move up the field through a series of rushes up the right and middle. After tackles from the Bears on fourth down, the Wildcats reached the end zone with 3:38 left in the quarter.
Moving into the second quarter, the Bears maintained high energy as the Wildcats tore their way down the field. Junior Matei Tau and senior wide receiver Angelo Marin made multiple tackles, but the Wildcats were able to reach the end zone for their second touchdown of the game. With 6:30 left in the quarter, the Bears were losing 14-0.
The Bears kept up their offense regardless of the Wildcats’ strong defense. Eschelmen lofted a pass crossfield to Marin, who ran alongside the field to make first down. Another sequence of passes to seniors Jackson Harding and Josh Olsen put the Bears at the Wildcat’s 3-yard line with 2:20 left on the clock.
A fluid sequence from Eschleman left the Wildcats in awe as he faked a short pass and took off down the remaining yards through their defense to score a touchdown for the Bears. The Bears were now closing in on the Wildcats’ 14-7 lead right before halftime.
A collision between two Bears halted the game for half an hour and required emergency medical services to arrive on campus. Senior Jayden Delafuente was taken in an ambulance to the hospital to ensure no spinal damage had occurred.
M-A began the second half with the same relentless vigor. Tackles by seniors William Sherman and Giles Hayhurst prevented any further advances to the end zone from the Wildcats and forced them to pass over the ball to the Bears.
With over eight minutes left, Eschelman threw another gripping overhead pass to Marin, who raced the ball into the end zone. The third quarter ended with an even score of 14-14.
“After one of our players went down, it was obviously really tough for the team. Yet, we got a pause and almost managed to score. I just think that shows we had really great momentum,” Hayhurst said.
Although the Bears were successful in forcing the Wildcats to turn over the ball, Los Gatos was able to make a sneaky drive and sprint to the end zone as a result of a fumble on the Bears’ offense. The Wildcats were back in the lead 21-14.
The Bears shook it off and continued into the remaining 3:32 of the game with determination. Offensive plays from senior Rashied Middleton and Ama resulted in the first down for the Bears as they slowly made their way up the field. On fourth down, the Bears attempted a play but were stunted by the Wildcats, who turned to defense for the last two minutes of the game.
Not wasting any time, the Bears forced a fumble on the Wildcats’ quarterback with help from senior defensive end Devin Hyde, giving the Bears one more opportunity to retaliate. After another interception, the Bears were unable to mount a comeback, resulting in a 21-14 loss.
“We played our best opponent yet and played a competitive game. It’s only going to get better from here, we’re just going to keep getting better,” Hayhurst said.
“We played our hearts out,” Marin said. “We have another week—another opportunity. Let’s get this.”
