Cats set up battle for district crown

CLOVIS - Their work is still cut out for them, but the Wildcats made sure Thursday night that they'll have at least a fighting chance for a Class 6A playoff berth in this week's regular-season finale at Los Lunas.

Junior running back Kash Roberts and senior quarterback Jett Stone each rushed for more than 100 yards, and Clovis High rolled to a 40-6 District 5-6A victory over Santa Fe Capital at Leon Williams Stadium.

With the win, the Cats (3-6, 3-0 district) moved into a share of the top spot with the idle Tigers (5-4, 3-0), who were the Class 5A state champions in 2021. The winner of Friday's tilt is in - and not likely to get a particularly high seed - while the loser is all but out.

Roberts said the Cats weren't thinking that much about the finale going into this one.

"We just knew we had to get past this game (to have a chance)," said Roberts, who finished with 132 rushing yards and TD runs of 31 and 28 yards. "You don't need to worry about that until it's necessary."

Roberts put the Cats ahead with his first scoring run, capping a four-play, 57-yard march following the opening kickoff. He added his second TD in the final minute of the third stanza.

Stone, who finished with 17 carries for 118 yards, was a modest 4-of-8 through the air, but threw touchdown passes of 16 yards to sophomore Tyler Conley in the second period and 14 yards to junior Marvin Cox in the final minute of the contest.

The Cats' 0-6 start to the season seems like a distant memory at this point.

"Things started out rough, but it's all about how we finish the season," Roberts said. "We played some decent Texas teams (early), and I think those games helped prepare us for district."

The Cats' task was made a bit tougher, though, when senior flanker/defensive back R.J. Nora was ejected, along with Capital senior Matthew Lovato, after they got into a fight late in the third stanza. Nora will not be able to play in Friday's showdown.

Lovato was one of two Jaguars ejected in what became a bit of a chippy second half.

"We kept our composure when it counted," first-year CHS coach Andrew McCraw said. "I thought we played a great 48 minutes."

Despite losing one of their playmakers, Roberts expressed confidence in his teammates.

"We have some backups that I believe can get the job done," he said. "It'll be tougher, but I think we'll do what needs to be done."

Capital (4-4, 1-2) moved the ball sporadically behind senior quarterback Julian Munoz, who rushed for 92 yards and threw a late TD pass to junior wide receiver Elijah Rodriguez. But the Jaguars simply fell into a big hole early and are simply not built to come back from the kind of deficit they faced.

Clovis' defense limited the Jaguars to 182 total yards and 10 first downs for the game. Meantime, the offense scored on three of its four full first-half possessions and carried a 21-0 lead into the locker room.

Senior Brian Weiss scored from 2 yards out late in the half. Senior running back Samaj Satchel took over for Roberts in the fourth quarter and tallied 78 yards on just seven attempts, including a 3-yard touchdown run.

Clovis, which compiled 25 first downs, finished with 399 yards on the ground. The Cats had 14 rushing plays of 10 or more yards, including at least one for each of the five players who toted the rock.

"We knew our schedule was tough early, but we knew once we got to districts we had a shot," McCraw said. "The way we're playing, I'm really exciting about that next game."