The win put Raymondville at 4-3, 2-1 and the Red Ants at 1-6, 0-3 in a very tight District 16-4A Division II playoff race.
“I thought we came out strong defensively and got a few picks,” said Raymondville head coach Frank Cantu. “Our offense started slow, but we stayed after it and I think we wore them after a while.
“We played the second quarter very clean, we got a few turnovers and we decided to go for broke and throw some deep balls because we knew we could complete them, and I think that completely changed the tone of the game.”
After a close 3-3 first quarter where both teams traded field goals, Raymondville scored 28 unanswered points in the second quarter behind quarterback Daniel Gutierrez, and running backs Bert Najera and David Marroquin.
Gutierrez showed his athleticism by scoring on a 20-yard touchdown run and on the next possession Gutierrez threw a 47-yard TD pass to Marroquin to stretch the lead 25-3 with 1:14 left in the half.
Najera was another bright spot for the Kats offense, scoring two TDs from 26 yards and 1 yard out.
Defensively, the Bearkats demonstrated a dominating performance, grabbing four interceptions, including a 70-yard pick-six by Derrick Saenz to put the game away with 3:28 left in the third quarter.
Progreso showed it could move the ball, but penalties and turnovers hindered any chance of mounting a comeback.
However, that did not stop Joey San Roman from playing hard as the senior quarterback managed to escape a blitz and score on a 5-yard TD in the fourth quarter with 9:22 left in the game.
With two big games against Rio Hondo and Port Isabel remaining on the schedule, coach Cantu issued a challenge for the team after the game.
“I challenged them to be a little more fired up than usual,” said Cantu. “It’s toward the end of the season and they have to realize we have two games to prove that all the hard work they have put in this year was worth it.
“It’s going to take every bit of energy and dedication that they have to meet the challenge and win these last two ball games.”