Photos courtesy of Charla Shults
(Title picture: Sophomore Colton Rose hits paydirt on the touchdown)
BORGER – Second half touchdowns by Senior Jeryn Owens and Senior wideout Gunter Thomas weren’t enough for the Pampa Harvesters (0-4) as they fell to the Borger Bulldogs 30-20 on Friday evening. The loss snaps an 11-game Pampa winning streak dating back to 2015.
The Harvesters offense didn’t have much going on in the first half, aside from a big run from Junior Jeryn Owens and a big catch-and-run from Senior Gunter Thomas.
The Pampa Harvesters’ offense struggled in the early goings on the game. After turning over on downs in the second quarter, the Borger offense, leading 14-0 seemed to be poised to make it a three-possession lead heading into halftime.
That was until Sophomore Cruise Godino, who is also No. 32 this week, intercepted a Borger pass on the near side of the field to give the offense the ball.
(Sophomore Cruise Godino nabs the interception from Borger)
From there, Sophomore Colton Rose took the hand-off 72 yards to the Borger five-yard
line. After inching closer to the goal line, the Harvesters were penalized for false start two plays in a row, setting Pampa back to the Borger 12-yard line.
In the closing moments of the half, Junior Jeryn Owens found Sophomore Madden Campos in the flat for pay-dirt. After the extra point from Junior Brayan Montelongo, the Harvesters cut the Borger lead to one score at 14-7 with six seconds left in the half.
After a quick Borger touchdown to make it 21-7 Borger, the Harvesters’ first drive of the second half was a slow and methodical one, with the Harvesters moving the chains for the first time on a pass from Owens to Godino for 14 yards. Over the next several plays, Owens and Rose would tag team to move the sticks.
Two plays later, Owens found an opening for a 15-yard run to move into enemy territory to the 35-yard line. Rose rushed for another 13 yards and a fresh set of downs before Owens found Thomas for a 20-yard touchdown. The Montelongo extra point punctuated a drive that took 7:08 off the clock. It was 21-14 Borger with 4:02 left in the third.
The tough Harvester defense held strong on the ensuing Bulldog drive, forcing the punt and setting the Harvesters up at the Borger 42.
On the first play of the next drive, Owens scored a touchdown on a long 42-yard run. But a personal foul penalty after the score led to a 42-yard extra point attempt, which was blocked and kept the score at 21-20 Borger with 2:48 left in the third quarter.
The Bulldogs added a touchdown on the following drive, followed by a safety on a botched punt snap on the ensuing Harvester drive to make it 30-20 Borger with 9:31 left to play.
The Harvesters’ Senior Cy LeBlanc recovered a fumble on a long catch-and-run by Borger to give Pampa possession on their side of the field.
The Harvesters’ weren’t able to take advantage of the turnover and instead found themselves in a power struggle with the Bulldogs. Neither offense scored anymore points in the game the game closed with the 30-20 final.
The Harvesters return to action on Friday, Sept. 25, when they host the Canadian Wildcats. The game will also be their Homecoming game with the Homecoming Court festivities at halftime.
Stat Round-up
Pampa finished with 369 yards of total offense, including 283 rushing yards and 86 passing yards, in Friday night’s 30-20 loss to Borger. The Harvesters averaged 7.4 yards per rushing attempt and finished with 15 first downs.
Junior Owens led the passing attack, completing 9 of 15 passes for 79 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, while Senior Gage Gamblin completed 2 of 5 passes for seven yards. Pampa finished 11 of 20 passing for 86 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.
On the ground, Owens carried 19 times for a team-high 146 yards and a touchdown, including a 42-yard scoring run. Sophomore Rose added 133 yards on 16 carries, including a 72-yard run. Sophomore Campos had three yards on two carries.
Thomas led the receivers with five catches for 48 yards and a touchdown, while Sophomore Godino caught three passes for 26 yards. Campos had one reception for 12 yards and a touchdown.
The Harvesters lost one fumble but did not throw an interception, while the Pampa defense forced two Borger turnovers — an interception by Godino and a fumble recovery by Senior Cy LeBlanc.
Defensively, Sophomore Mason Mitchell led Pampa with seven tackles, including four solo stops and three assists. Junior Aiden Hammond finished with four tackles, while Senior Baron Botello and Senior Kiaro Flores had three apiece. Sophomore Ramiro Baca, Sophomore Cade Wilson and LeBlanc each recorded two tackles, while Godino, Senior Connor McKinley and Senior Carter McLaughlin each finished with one.