Greyhounds earn their first win of the season over Roosevelt High School
– The Atascadero Greyhounds football team won their first game of the young season 35-27 over the Roosevelt Rough Riders.
After losing their season opener against Bakersfield on a heartbreaking last-second touchdown, the Greyhounds found their groove, playing a complete game on both sides of the ball. Sophomore quarterback Michael Trejo in particular had a standout game, leading Atascadero to victory with four total touchdowns.
Following a three and out on Atascadero’s opening drive, Roosevelt drove down the field and scored from 12 yards out to get the early 7-0 lead.
From then on, it was all Atascadero as their offense took over for their second possession. Michael Trejo found senior receiver Ethan Blais for the first down and Atascadero refused to slow down, converting two fourth downs en route to a short touchdown pass from Trejo to senior receiver Josiah Gaona that evened up the score at 7-7.
On the ensuing kickoff, Roosevelt’s returner fumbled deep in their own territory and the Greyhounds jumped on it, giving them the ball back inside the Rough Rider 30. After a couple of first-down scrambles by Trejo, he sneaks it in for the first rushing touchdown of his young varsity career, putting Atascadero up 14-7.
The Greyhounds’ defense held strong and forced a Roosevelt three and out to give their offense another possession. However, a booming 75-yard punt from the Rough Riders gave Atascadero a long field to work with as they set up at their own 8-yard line.
The Greyhounds drove the ball slowly down the field before they were stopped three times at midfield. Electing to go for it on fourth down with eight yards to go, Trejo rolled out and found junior receiver Damon Mitchell for the 36-yard touchdown, extending Atascadero’s lead to 21-7 at the end of the first half.
Roosevelt came out of the break aggressive, looking to respond after allowing back-to-back unanswered Greyhound touchdowns. They received the ball and got a couple of quick first downs before scoring another rushing touchdown, but missed the extra point, only cutting the lead down to 21-13.
After a good kickoff return, Atascadero found paydirt again as Trejo stiff-armed a defender and ran the ball in for his fourth overall touchdown, giving them the 28-14 lead.
However, the Rough Riders responded quickly, as senior Gabriel Martinez found a hole and saw nothing but green ahead of him, cruising in for the 53-yard touchdown. Roosevelt went for a two-point conversion to make up for their missed PAT from their prior drive, but failed to score, leaving the game at 28-19.
The Greyhounds received the ball at the start of the fourth quarter and picked up some first downs off the legs of senior Austin Smith, but were ultimately stopped in their own territory and forced to punt.
A good return by sophomore Adrian Flores left the Rough Riders with a short field, setting up shop at the Atascadero 40-yard line. Junior quarterback CJ Barker rolled out, reversed the field, and found senior tight end Maurice Tatum on the backside for a touchdown, closing the gap and giving Roosevelt a shot at a late comeback. The Rough Riders made sure to convert the two-point conversion this time, making the score 28-27.
Atascadero received the ball back with five minutes to go in the game. Another great kick return by Mitchell gave them great field position, but they were faced with a big fourth down after being stopped by the Rough Riders. Trejo found Gaona for the first down, then Smith ran the ball down the middle for the late touchdown, putting the Greyhounds up 35-27 with three minutes remaining.
Roosevelt received the ball back with one last chance to tie the game, but Blais intercepted a deep pass to the endzone, sealing the game and securing the Atascadero victory.
The Greyhounds move to 1-1 with their week 2 win, and will hope to keep their momentum going as they return home to face the South Spartans on Friday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m.
