The Battle Mountain High School football team traveled to American Falls, Idaho, this past Friday where they would face a tough Beavers team. Quarterback Gabe Naveran and the Longhorn offense were held scoreless for the game.
The Longhorns football were held under 30 points for the first time this season, while sustaining their first loss of the year. American Falls, a member of the Idaho 3A Southeast Division, achieved its second win of the season. The Beavers beat the Longhorns 14-0.
The high-powered Longhorn offense was unable to get anything going against the strong Beaver defense. American Falls was able to score a couple of touchdowns in the first half of the game but failed to move the ball across the goal line in the second half of the game.
Naveran was unable to make progress in the air, completing two of the 13 passes he threw. The Longhorns have dominated in the run game this season and were averaging 146 yards per game. Battle Mountain fell short of its mark, rushing for 51 yards as a team.
The Longhorns also turned the ball over four times on offense by losing three fumbles and one interception thrown by Naveran.
“We started off slow, but after the first quarter our defense dug in and did a good job,” said BMHS coach Mitch Domagala. “Offensively, we struggled, and seemed to be about one step off in our execution.”
Coach Domagala knew American Falls would be a challenge for his team, recognizing they would have to grind it out against the scrappy Beavers.
The Longhorns will not have to wait long for the next big challenge, though, as the preseason 2A league favorite according to maxpreps.com, Yerington Lions will visit Tim Knight Field in Battle Mountain on Friday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
Both teams will be entering the game with a record of 4-1, with Yerington’s loss coming against Bishop Union High School in California by a score of 29-12.
Since their loss, the Lions have only given up six points on defense. The Longhorns will face the evenly matched opponent this Friday night, a match-up that will have an impact on the postseason seeding.
