This past Friday night, the Battle Mountain High School football team faced off against Yerington in a battle of two of the top scoring offenses in the Northern. The Longhorn defense came out on top and tamed the Lions, not allowing Yerington to score in the 42-2 win.
Both teams entered the game with a record of 4-1 on the season. Both teams have shown the ability to score points and play strong defense but, during the game, those skills were shown most strongly by the Longhorns.
After forcing the Lions to punt on their opening drive, the Longhorns drove down the field ending with quarterback Gabe Naveran throwing a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Reese Artz. The Longhorns continued moving the ball well on offense throughout the game and Naveran led the way with 221 yards passing and four touchdown passes. Naveran also led the Battle Mountain rushing game with 120 yards on 15 carries.
Running back Kade Quintana scored the second touchdown for the Longhorns with an 11-yard run. At the end of the first quarter, the Longhorns' lead against the Lions was 14-0. Heading into the second quarter, Yerington was still looking to convert its initial first down of the game.
The second quarter started with the Battle Mountain defense holding Yerington’s offense to season lows in almost every statistical category. After forcing a Lion punt, the Longhorns took over again on offense and drove the ball down the field into the red zone.
“Our defense played lights out tonight,” said BMHS head coach Mitch Domagala. “They didn’t get a first down till the second quarter and couldn’t have more than five or six for the game.”
After a touchdown pass called back by a holding penalty, the Longhorns faced a fourth and seven from the 16-yard line. Naveran took the snap and threw the ball to the end zone where Mason Fuller made the catch for the touchdown, bringing the lead to 21-0.
Yerington responded, driving down the field to the Longhorn goal line but fumbled the ball. Battle Mountain recovered but could not capitalize off the turnover, and instead, Naveran got sacked in the end zone for a safety. Yerington was now on the scoreboard with the lead trimmed to 21-2 in the second quarter.
Moments later, Battle Mountain linebacker Eric Martinez, intercepted Yerington’s Donavan Coplin and returned the ball to the Yerington 6-yard line. Naveran scored shortly after with a 6-yard touchdown scramble. The Longhorns lead the game 28-2 heading into the half.
Naveran continued his big game in the third quarter with two more touchdown passes, the first going to Bobby Kester from 21 yards out and the second to Artz from eight yards out.
Artz led the game in receiving with 106 yards on six receptions and two touchdowns. The Longhorns were able to start the running clock rule with the score expanded to 42-2 at the end of the third quarter. Neither team would score in the final period, and the Longhorns won the game 42-2.
“That was a good way for us to rebound from last week,” Domagala said. “We threw a challenge to our offensive line this week to step up their game because they didn’t feel right about the previous week. They came out tonight and controlled the line of scrimmage, providing gaping holes.”
The Longhorns will play host to their rival school, the Pershing County Mustangs, on Friday at 7 p.m. The winner of the contest will likely win the regular season title in the Northern 2A.
