Bulldogs drop district opener to Roswell High, 29-8
Artesia fans disinclined to give superstition any credence may have just become believers after Friday night. Because things could not have gone more awry for the Bulldog football team had there been a ladder stationed over their breakthrough banner, a herd of black cats crossing the field in front of them, and a stack of mirrors at the bottom of the Dog Pile.
On a Friday the 13th that lived up to its reputation and then some, the boys in orange just had one of those nights in their District 4-AAAAA opener against Roswell High at Wool Bowl.
The opening onside kick careened off an Artesia player’s leg and ricocheted 10 yards into the waiting arms of a Coyote. Three of their drives ended in turnovers on downs inside the Roswell 10-yard line. Another ended in an interception and another still on a fumble that resulted in a 61-yard return for a touchdown.
The Bulldogs’ typically hyper-potent offense generated no points and under 230 yards amidst a disjointed and mistake-prone night in the passing game, and Roswell was able to hang 445 yards on Artesia in a 29-8 victory that puts them in the District 4 driver’s seat moving forward.
“It was unfortunate,” head coach Jeremy Maupin said Saturday. “That opening kick was just a freak accident, and that’s kind of the way things went for us all night from there.”
Roswell High needed just four plays to capitalize on the onside kick recovery, riding workhorse senior fullback Bryce Sanchez from their own 37 to the Artesia 36. From there, quarterback Manny Fuentez found Abey Toscano wide open for the score just under two minutes into the game.
It was an unsettling start but no cause for alarm. The same could still have been said when the second quarter began with the ‘Dogs’ second consecutive turnover on downs, the first coming on fourth and one at the Coyote eight-yard line and the second on fourth and five near midfield after an offsides penalty on Roswell was waved off.
The Coyotes, meanwhile, took the short field and ran with it, with Sanchez taking them from the Artesia 48 to the 17 before Fuentez hit an open Malachi Mitchell in the end zone to put Roswell up 12-0 following their second missed PAT.
Alarm might have begun to creep in when the Bulldogs’ third drive of the night again ended in a TOD, this time at the Coyote three. It left Artesia scoreless through the first half, and it gave Roswell High just enough time to tack a 29-yard field goal to their tally before the break.
And yet even still, a 15-0 deficit should have been nothing. Two touchdowns, one with a conversion, and the ‘Dogs would be back in business.
When David Hammond intercepted a Fuentez pass to end Roswell’s first series of the second half, handing the ball over to the offense at the Coyote 38, it felt as though the ship was beginning to right itself. Artesia began marching into the red zone, securing a first down at the Coyote 13 on a five-yard run by Izac Cazares on fourth and one.
But the ‘Dogs lost a yard on an attempted run, a pass fell incomplete, and on fourth and 10, a pass from Nye Estrada to Ethan Conn came up three yards short of a first down to once again turn the ball over to Roswell High.
It was another setback, but the sense that things could turn around in an instant if Artesia could just get a handful of plays to go their way remained.
The Orange Crush appeared to provide another push toward that end when, on second and 19 from the Coyote nine-yard line, Fuentez was whistled for intentional grounding while being brought down in the end zone. That should have resulted in a safety, but one was not awarded.
The defense was able to force a punt from the Coyote one, however, and with the ball at the Roswell 32, the moment finally felt now-or-never for the Bulldog offense. It turned out to be the latter.
On third and 10, a pass, catch and fumble was scooped up by Roswell’s Mason Greathouse and returned 61 yards for a touchdown to put the Coyotes on top 22-0 with 2:13 to go in the third. From there, Artesia went three and out on its final possession of the quarter, and the punt from their own 16 set Roswell up at midfield.
The fourth quarter commenced with the Coyotes expanding their lead to 29 on a nine-yard toss from Fuentez to Mitchell, open in the back of the end zone for the second time on the night. The Bulldogs’ last offensive series of the game ended three plays later in an interception.
The Crush was able to prevent the shutout when, with 5:36 remaining in the game, Josiah Rodriguez picked a Fuentez pass at the Artesia 24 and returned it 76 yards for the score. Cazares added a conversion run to round out the final, 29-8, and the Coyotes were able to run out the clock from there.
“I thought our defense played well, especially in the second half,” Maupin said. “[Roswell] came out and kind of established their running game early, but I think our defense did a good job of responding and definitely played well enough to win.
“Offensively, we just made so many mistakes, and we could not take advantage of opportunities. I mean, how many times inside the red zone did we get stopped. We’re on the two-yard line at one point and false start. And then all the drops… we just didn’t show up offensively, and that’s uncharacteristic for Artesia. I just didn’t have us ready.”
The Bulldogs finished the night with 224 total yards of offense, 99 rushing and 125 passing. Estrada was 15 of 35 for 125 yards and a pick, Conn went 10-88 receiving, and Frankie Galindo was 14-78 rushing, with the bulk of Artesia’s yardage — 91 rushing and 96 passing — being amassed in the first half. The ‘Dogs managed just 37 yards of offense in the final 24 minutes.
Roswell, meanwhile, posted 445 yards, 269 on the ground and 176 through the air. Sanchez finished with 189 yards on 31 carries, while Fuentez was 12 of 17 for 176 yards passing, three touchdowns, and two interceptions.
With the loss, the Bulldogs dropped to 7-1 on the season, 0-1 in district play, while the Coyotes improve to 8-0, 1-0. Artesia will host their final two D4 bouts, beginning at 7 p.m. Friday with Goddard at Bulldog Bowl. The Rockets are 6-2, 1-0 following a 27-13 defeat of Mayfield Thursday. Roswell will be taking on the Trojans at Wool Bowl.
“It was a great atmosphere last night,” said Maupin. “Our fans were great, it was a huge crowd — it was loud, and it was exciting. We just forgot that we had to play a game offensively.
“It’s definitely time for some renewed focus, and now we just have to put that game behind us and turn around and get ready for Goddard.”
