Bearcats thrill crowd with shut-out over Conquistadores
Paso Robles 35, Cabrillo 0
–After losses to two high-ranked opponents, the Bearcats were looking for a win Friday night over Cabrillo. Putting together a balanced attack on offense, the Paso Robles defense outplayed their opponents and shut-out the visiting Conquistadores, 35-0, to the cheers of the hometown crowd.
The game got underway at War Memorial Stadium following a tribute to the victims of the 9/11 attacks. A young team, Cabrillo (0-3) had just 11 seniors on the roster and was coming off of a 35-9 loss to Dos Pueblos the previous week. The Bearcats (1-2) got the scoring started late in the first quarter from their own 25-yard line when running back Mark Armstrong took an inside hand-off from quarterback Justin Davis, broke two Conquistadores’ tackles, and raced down the sideline for a 75-yard touchdown. The PAT was missed, giving Paso Robles a 6-0 lead with 2:02 left in the first quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Bearcat running back Christian Erickson had a 23-yard run, putting Paso Robles at the Cabrillo 31-yard line. Davis hit a wide-open Armstrong with a pass that he took to the 3-yard line before a Bearcat penalty brought the ball back to the 20-yard line. On the next play, Erickson took the hand-off from Davis and outran the Conquistadores’ defense for a 20-yard touchdown. After a failed two point conversion, the Bearcats led 12-0 with 8:25 left in the second quarter.
The Bearcat defense held and forced Cabrillo to punt; Paso Robles started their drive from their own 21- yard line and put together an impressive drive. With the ball at the Cabrillo 15-yard line on a fourth down and 5-yards to go, Davis threw a 15-yard pass to wide receiver Steven Schouten, who made an excellent diving catch two yards into the end zone for a touchdown. Another failed 2-point conversion attempt and the Bearcats took an 18-0 lead with 1:53 left in the first half.
Once again, the Bearcat defense held, and Paso Robles got the ball back at their own 35-yard line. A 40- yard pass from Davis to Schouten, who was being covered closely by a Cabrillo defender, put the Bearcats at the 15-yard line. Bearcat Jonathan Jaimes kicked a 32-yard field goal as time ran out, increasing the Paso Robles’ lead to 21-0 at the end of the first half.
Late in the third quarter, the Bearcats had possession at their own 48-yard line when Davis dropped back and passed to Schouten, who caught the ball at the 18-yard line and ran untouched into the end zone for his second score of the game. Davis would finish the game with 14-20 for 208 yards passing with two TD’s. The 52-yard pass play and successful PAT had the Bearcats leading 28-0 with 2:22 remaining in the third quarter.
Cabrillo continued to struggle on offense and, when a pass from quarterback Matt Rocha was intercepted by Bearcat Josh Plale, it set Paso Robles up for a series of four plays that ultimately had Erickson running a sweep to the left and scoring his second touchdown of the game on a 10-yard run. Erickson would finish the game with 18 carries for 153 yards rushing and two TD’s for Paso Robles. The PAT was good and the Bearcats were up 35-0 as the third quarter came to an end.
The fourth quarter gave the Bearcats an opportunity to give playing time to their second string. They successfully held the Conquistadores (0-3), giving Paso Robles its first win of the season.
This Friday, the Bearcats are on the road to Santa Maria to face the St. Joseph Knights (3-0). Game time is set for 7 p.m. on Sept. 18.