By ROY HESS | Staff Writer
The Pace Vikings stayed on course for the playoffs in District 16-5A Division I with a 53-21 victory against the Lopez Lobos on Friday at Sams Memorial Stadium.
The Vikings improved to 5-2 on the season and 5-1 in district.
Lopez, coming off last week’s 24-21 win against PSJA Southwest that snapped an 11-game losing streak, slipped to 1-6 and 1-5.
“(What stood out to me about this game) was the way we came together as a team,” said Pace quarterback Jose Banda, who rushed for a 13-yard TD and threw a 30-yard scoring pass during the first half for the Vikings. “We came together and had a good start (by scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter).
“The way we’re playing, I think we have a good chance to make the playoffs,” Banda added. “We’re going against three of the best teams in our district (Mission Veterans Memorial, Brownsville Veterans Memorial and Rio Grande City) in the next three weeks, so we’ve got to keep working hard for wins in those games.
“All I can say is ‘Go Vikings.’”
Pace running back Dylan Barron highlighted the game by scoring on back-to-back second-half runs of 95 and 82 yards. He also had a first-quarter scoring run of 3 yards and finished the contest with 258 yards rushing on 15 carries.
It was a night of big rushing plays by Pace as Matthew Cuellar scored on a 43-yard run during the third quarter and Ilijah Solis went to the end zone on a 77-yard scamper during the fourth period.
Solis’ TD run made it 53-7 with 7:37 remaining.
During the final 4:47, Lopez QB Jose M. Cruz threw TD passes of 8 yards to Jonathan Munoz and 52 yards to Jacob Cortinas. Also, Cortinas caught a 27-yard scoring pass from Cruz with 48 seconds left before halftime to make it 24-7.
It was 27-7 at intermission after Pace kicker Christopher Zapata booted a 34-yard field goal with six seconds to go in the second quarter. Earlier during the second period, with 3:52 showing, Zapata kicked a 28-yard field goal to make it 24-0.
The Vikings led 14-0 after one period, 27-7 at halftime and 47-7 going into the final quarter.
District action continues next week for both teams. Pace is at Mission Veterans Memorial next Thursday, and Lopez returns to Sams to play La Joya Palmview next Saturday.
The Pace Vikings stayed on course for the playoffs in District 16-5A Division I with a 53-21 victory against the Lopez Lobos on Friday at Sams Memorial Stadium.
The Vikings improved to 5-2 on the season and 5-1 in district.
Lopez, coming off last week’s 24-21 win against PSJA Southwest that snapped an 11-game losing streak, slipped to 1-6 and 1-5.
“(What stood out to me about this game) was the way we came together as a team,” said Pace quarterback Jose Banda, who rushed for a 13-yard TD and threw a 30-yard scoring pass during the first half for the Vikings. “We came together and had a good start (by scoring two touchdowns in the first quarter).
“The way we’re playing, I think we have a good chance to make the playoffs,” Banda added. “We’re going against three of the best teams in our district (Mission Veterans Memorial, Brownsville Veterans Memorial and Rio Grande City) in the next three weeks, so we’ve got to keep working hard for wins in those games.
“All I can say is ‘Go Vikings.’”
Pace running back Dylan Barron highlighted the game by scoring on back-to-back second-half runs of 95 and 82 yards. He also had a first-quarter scoring run of 3 yards and finished the contest with 258 yards rushing on 15 carries.
It was a night of big rushing plays by Pace as Matthew Cuellar scored on a 43-yard run during the third quarter and Ilijah Solis went to the end zone on a 77-yard scamper during the fourth period.
Solis’ TD run made it 53-7 with 7:37 remaining.
During the final 4:47, Lopez QB Jose M. Cruz threw TD passes of 8 yards to Jonathan Munoz and 52 yards to Jacob Cortinas. Also, Cortinas caught a 27-yard scoring pass from Cruz with 48 seconds left before halftime to make it 24-7.
It was 27-7 at intermission after Pace kicker Christopher Zapata booted a 34-yard field goal with six seconds to go in the second quarter. Earlier during the second period, with 3:52 showing, Zapata kicked a 28-yard field goal to make it 24-0.
The Vikings led 14-0 after one period, 27-7 at halftime and 47-7 going into the final quarter.
District action continues next week for both teams. Pace is at Mission Veterans Memorial next Thursday, and Lopez returns to Sams to play La Joya Palmview next Saturday.