A cool evening at Livingston that saw the hosts honor their 17 seniors was the backdrop for the final evening of WAC football for the Pacheco Panthers season. Looking to play spoilers and keep a slim playoff hope alive, the Panthers brought all they had seeking their 6th win of the season. Unfortunately, Livingston had other ideas which led to their 13 to 7 win over the Panthers.
The first half saw the Panthers (5-5 overall, 3-4 WAC) control every aspect of the game. After each team traded possessions to start the game, Pacheco went on a 8-play, 60-yard drive to get on the scoreboard first. Facing a fourth and 12 at the Livingston 26-yard line, senior quarterback Brennan Watkins found junior Hezekiah George for the Panther touchdown. The Rafael Vargas-Hernandez extra point would give Pacheco the early 7-0 lead.
Livingston’s next drive was ended on an Arturo Anguiano interception. Pacheco could only muster a five-play drive before punting back to the Wolf Pack. A quick three-and-out by Livingston would give the Panthers one last chance to score before half. Pacheco marched 37 yards on 6 plays to set up a 39-yard field that fell short at the half time buzzer.
While the Panthers outgained the Wolf Pack 128-34 in the first half, the second half would be completely opposite. Livingston took the opening kick-off and marched down sixty-six yards on seven rushing plays to even the score at 7-7. From that point both teams would only combine for just under 130 yards off offense as both defensive units flexed their collective muscle.
A late interception from senior Joseph Franco and a big fourth down stop would give Pacheco their chances in the second half but neither team could find the end zone resulting in overtime. The Wolf Pack started with the ball in the first overtime and could only manage 8 yards before turning it over on downs to the Panthers.
Pacheco found themselves going backwards on their possession resulting in a second overtime period. The Panthers would start with the ball and gained four yards on first down. A loss on second down set up a third and long. The toss play was met with some hard contact forcing a Panther fumble that would be returned 78 yards for the game winning score.
Despite out gaining the Wolf Pack 168-166 on the evening the second half struggles spelled doom for Pacheco. Leading the defensive unit were Isaac Valencia, Jonathan Munoz, Robert Crawford and interceptions from Anguiano and Franco.
Offensively, junior Aidan Pikas carried 21 times for 51 yards to lead the running game. Peyton Mosley hauled in three receptions for 38 yards while Arturo Anguiano had four catches for 31 yards. Watkins finished 9-15 for 102 yards passing with a touchdown and one interception.
