Swarmed: PSJA North pummels Mission Vets in anticipated game
PHARR — It was a clash of Rio Grande Valley football powerhouses at PSJA Stadium with the PSJA North Raiders (2-0) hosting the Mission Veterans Patriots (1-1) on Thursday.
The Raiders, who are arguably the best team in the Valley, proved why they’re the top squad as they pummeled the Patriots, 56-14.
It didn’t take long for the Raiders’ offense to steer their ship to the end zone as they scored in less than five minutes of game time with Mark Quintanilla breaking out on a 49-yard run after breaking a tackle.
The defense and special teams for the Raiders made it difficult for Roman Reyna — one of the Valley’s top QBs — to get anything going. It wasn’t foreign to see him scrambling trying to keep the drive alive against the “blackout defense” of PSJA North.
After a blocked punt on Reyna for a safety and a field goal, Raiders sat in the captain’s seat with a nice 12-0 lead going into the second.
The Patriots were within striking distance early in the second quarter, but struck out on a fourth and long.
Drayden Espinoza, who took the reins of quarterback this year, followed suit like Quintanilla as he turned on the jets for his own 50-yard run. Espinoza on a following drive didn’t let the 16-20 mph winds stop his arm as he found Ryan Diaz for a 49-yard TD pass of his own.
Then, to really set the tone, Espinoza on the QB draw punched it in for a 35-0 cushion going into the break.
Mission Vets couldn’t get their groove on at any point. There was a spark on the last play of the first half with Reyna spinning and scrambling but the Raiders were able to ensure that Patriot players saw nothing but black jerseys.
Anytime, Reyna tried to scramble he was usually chased by three or more defenders. Even when he was able to get a pass off, he was roughed up by the defensive line of the Raiders.
The Patriots came out swinging in the second as they stopped the Raiders on a fourth and short. Then, Fabian Ruiz broke out on a 47-yard run for the touchdown. The two-point conversion was incomplete by a Reyna pass.
On the following drive, Espinoza let it fly for 38 yards to Diaz.
To counteract, Reyna launched it to Ruiz on the right hand side for another touchdown. With the two-point conversion, it was 35-14 with a minute left to go in the third.
In the fourth, Espinoza rushed for about 20 yards for the TD to make it 42-14. Then on the next drive, Mason Villalpando walked right in the endzone on a 25-yard run. After a Raiders' stop, Antwan Estrada had a 30-yard run to make it 56-14.
Espinoza, junior quarterback for the Raiders, finished with 121 yards passing with one touchdown and two rushing scores for 120 yards.
The Raiders will travel to Edinburg to take on the Vela SaberCats on Thursday. The Patriots will look to bounce back against Weslaco at Bobby Lackey Stadium.