Colton, CA—Friday night’s football game against the Eisenhower Eagles was marred by an on field altercation, five player ejections, injuries to key players and a dramatic finish that resulted in a 28-21 loss for the Yellowjackets.
After a 7-7 first quarter, offenses improved. Tempers flared when, with less than a minute remaining, QB Koa Regalado was dragged to midfield by an Eagle player after the play was called dead. Colton and Eisenhower players charged at each other. Coaches, administrators and security staff rushed to break up the players.
On the play, Regalado appeared to be injured, and did not return to play in the second half.
After a break in play to sort out what happened, five players were ejected: three Eagles and two Yellowjackets.
“I think we had some incompetent reffing errors,” said head coach Ray Rodriguez. “Because of that players emotions got the best of them.”
Colton went into the half down 21-14.
The third quarter was marked by a slew of penalties, with both teams putting up zeroes. In the fourth, however, the Yellowjackets fought back. Defensive Lineman Carlos Garcia recovered a timely fumble as the Eagles looked to score from the Colton 1-yard line. That set the stage for running duo Tyler Zesk and Isaiah Garcia to tie the score at 21.
That led to a tense endgame. The Yellowjackets had the ball at midfield and came up empty handed on four consecutive downs.
Defense fought to get the ball back, pinning the Eagles on the Colton 17, setting Eisenhower up for a field goal. However, the Eagles lost 15 yards on three straight field goal formation penalties, putting their offense back on the field in a fourth and long situation.
With 24 seconds left on the game clock, Eisenhower’s QB Elijah Necochea threw the ball down the middle of the field to receiver Jamirre Mooring for the game ending touchdown.
“We made some mental mistakes that hurt us,” Rodriguez said about the game. “The game was very winnable, with or without Koa. The boys know the standard and they will work during this short week to clean it up.”
Now Colton stands at 1-1 on the young season and looking at a short week as they next travel to Redlands to play Arrowhead Christian on Thursday. Game time is 7:30 pm, with the game being held at Redlands High School.
