Robertson football posts second consecutive shutout | Sports

Photo Courtesy of Shannon Aragon

Through two games this season, the Robertson Cardinals football team has not allowed the opposition to put a single point on the scoreboard. 

In the team’s home opener last Friday, Robertson shut out Cobre 51-0, ending the game with nearly half the fourth quarter remaining thanks to New Mexico’s mercy rules, which automatically end a game if a team leads by more than 50 points in the second half. 

It appears the Cardinals are coming together nicely at the beginning of the season, slowly eliminating any doubts that persisted with a changing of the guard at head coach, and with several impactful players graduating back in May. 

For the second week in a row, the outcome of the contest was never in doubt, as Robertson took the lead before running a single offensive play. They returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown and never looked back. 

The Cardinals extended the lead to 14-0 a few minutes later on a touchdown pass by quarterback Nathan Gonzales.

A pick-six interception return for a touchdown extended the lead to 21-0, and the rout was on. By the time the first quarter came to a close, the Cardinals had added another touchdown and a field goal and led 31-0, leaving little to be needed on the field. 

The Cardinals scored single touchdowns in each of the ensuing three quarters to gain valuable snaps for the players on the roster and treated the home fans in attendance to a showcase of the talent on the roster over the next couple of months. 

Gonzales threw for two touchdowns and ran for one more. He also recorded the pick-six interception return for the Cardinals. Senior Elijah Oritz ran for a pair of touchdowns, and also caught one from Gonzales. Freshman Marcus Montoya also caught a touchdown pass for the Cardinals. 

Senior Brenen Deisler had the kickoff return touchdown for the Cardinals to open the game. 

This week, the Cardinals remain at home when they face off against Santa Rosa at 7 p.m. Friday. Much like the Cardinals, the Lions are 2-0 to start the young season, with wins against Texico and Jal. 

West falls on the road against Dexter

In their first road game of the season, West Las Vegas struggled to keep up with one of Class 3A’s top teams, falling against Dexter 50-23. 

Dexter’s impressive rushing attack consistently gashed the Dons defense, racking up 237 yards on the ground on 35 attempts, to go with an opportunistic passing game that added 137 yards and a touchdown. 

Though West kept pace for much of the first half, they eventually wore down and fell into a hole they could not climb out of. 

The West Las Vegas Dons will return home this week to take on Ruidoso Thursday night at 7 p.m. Ruidoso is 1-1 this season, just like West Las Vegas, with a win against Tularaso and a lopsided loss against Eunice.