Rivalry game ends in defeat for Los Altos
October 7, 2018
On Friday October 5th, Los Altos faced longtime rival Mountain View in a closely-matched game. The teams fought back and forth, but ultimately Los Altos lost 20-23. This marks the second loss for the Los Altos varsity football team this season, placing them at a 1-2 league record.
During the first quarter, Los Altos played with a strong offense. They made passes that allowed them to advance down the field with the help of sophomore Aaron Parker. With 5 minutes left in the quarter, senior Owen Conway scored the first touchdown of the game, putting Los Altos in the lead with a score of 6-0.
Los Altos gained possession in the second quarter and Mountain View was penalized 15 yards. With this penalty, Los Altos was able to move across the field, largely mobilized by Aaron who ran through Mountain View’s defense. However, Los Altos was unable to capitalize on their lead; soon after, a Los Altos player threw the ball right into the hands of a Mountain View player. With the ball thrown into their possession and no defense to stop them, Mountain View successfully scored their first touchdown of the game. MVHS went for the field goal and took the lead, 6-7 with 27 seconds left in the quarter.
The third quarter started off with the ball in Mountain View’s possession. Mountain View was able to get through Los Altos defense and scored another touchdown. Los Altos doubled down on their defense and managed to block a field goal and senior Ben Parker advanced Los Altos into Mountain View territory. With seconds left in the third quarter, Ben scored a touchdown and senior Mario Lopez landed a field goal, ending the third quarter 12-13.
With such a close score, pressure and emotions were high throughout the 4th quarter. Mountain View furthered their lead by seven points, but Los Altos refused go down without a fight. Aaron fought his way into the endzone, earning Los Altos 6 points. Los Altos chose to go for an extra two points instead of a field goal and succeeded. Tensions were high as the 4th quarter ended with a tie of 20-20.
This intense game went into overtime and each team was given four attempts to advance and earn points. Mountain View started off and tried to land a touchdown, but Los Altos was quick to knock them down. However, Mountain View managed to reach the 15 yard line and decided to go for a field goal, putting them at a lead of 20-23. With the ball in their possession, the Eagles needed to score a touchdown. The Mountain View defense immediately went after Los Altos and blocked them from advancing more than a yard in their first two attempts. Los Altos ended up being moved back 15 yards due to a penalty, making it more difficult for them to land a touchdown. With an incomplete pass during their third attempt, they decided to go for a field goal, but were unsuccessful. While the game was extremely close, Mountain View ultimately prevailed with a 20-23 victory.
With a streak of two two losses, the varsity football team hopes for a victory during their next away game against Monta Vista on Friday, October 12 at 7 p.m.
