All five teams in 6-man District 2 reach playoffs

ALBUQUERQUE – All five teams from District 2 were chosen for the eight-team 6-man playoffs, which begin on Friday night.

District champion and top-ranked Gateway Christian (8-0) earned the top seed and hosts No. 8 Floyd (2-5) in a 7 p.m. kickoff on Friday night at Roswell. Two other games, also involving area squads, are set for the same time with third-seeded Grady (7-2) welcoming No. 6 Dora (3-6) and fourth seed Elida (5-4) taking on fifth-seeded Mountainair (5-3).

The other quarterfinal, sending No. 7 Animas (3-5) to No. 2 Roy/Mosquero (9-0), is set for noon on Saturday.

In 8-man, Melrose (9-1) entertains District 3 rival Tatum (5-5) in a 7 p.m. kickoff on Friday, with all five squads from that district making the eight-team field. The other three games are also on tap Friday, with No. 5 Fort Sumner (5-2) visiting fourth-seeded Logan (7-3) at 7 p.m. and No. 6 Menaul (6-3) traveling to third seed Mesilla Valley (7-2) and No. 7 Clayton (5-5) playing No. 2 Legacy Academy (7-1) at Albuquerque in 6 p.m. kickoffs.

Semifinals in both divisions are slated for Nov. 3-4 with championship tilts on tap for Nov. 11.

In New Mexico area play on Friday night:

Animas 43, Elida 38 – At Animas, the host Panthers scored on a 30-yard pass from senior quarterback Kohan Evans to junior running back Tallon Marble with four seconds left to pull out a seesaw win.

Elida got scoring runs of 22 and 3 yards from senior Seth Jimenez, TD runs of 13 and 22 yards from sophomore Cason Norman and touchdown passes of 25 yards from junior Dylan Dobbins to senior Teagan Norman and 7 yards from sophomore Hayden Rubio to Dobbins. Senior Klayton Nixon kicked a 2-point conversion after the Tigers’ first score.

Elida led 26-19 at halftime, but trailed 37-26 before getting the Rubio-to-Dobbins pass with 2:07 left and Cason Norman’s second TD run with just under a minute to go for a 38-37 lead.

In another 6-man District 2 clash on Friday night, Gateway Christian posted a 56-6 win over Dora at Roswell.

In Texas games on Friday night:

Farwell 56, Amarillo Highland Park 32 – Junior quarterback Jonathan Armstrong completed 10-of-16 passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns and carried 12 times for 178 yards and three scores as the Steers (6-2, 2-1 District 1-2A Division I) rolled over the Hornets (4-4, 0-3) at Amarillo.

Armstrong’s scoring passes were for 30 yards to senior Jackson Wilbourn in the first quarter and 34 yards to senior Corey Stancell in the second stanza. He also ran for TDs of 20, 43 and 4 yards, while Stancell had 10 carries for 143 yards with touchdown runs of 9 and 85 yards.

Farwell is locked in a three-way tie for second in the district with Panhandle and West Texas, with Stratford (8-0, 3-0) in first place. The Steers travel to West Texas this Friday, then host Panhandle in the regular-season finale on Nov. 3.

Muleshoe 48, Amarillo River Road 6 – In another contest at Amarillo, the Mules (7-1, 1-1 District 2-3A Division I) rolled up 427 total yards in cruising past the Hornets (4-4, 0-3).

Junior quarterback Nathan Martens completed 7-of-10 passes for 115 yards, while freshman running back Josue Sigala rushed 10 times for 156 touchdowns and three scores. The Mules scored 28 second-quarter points to open a 35-6 lead at the half.

Muleshoe hosts Shallowater this Friday and visits Dalhart on Nov. 3 in 7 p.m. (CDT) starts to wrap up the regular campaign.