HUXLEY — Two long scoring passes in the third quarter allowed Ballard to open a 20-6 gap entering the final period Friday, with the hosts tacking on a final touchdown to tally a 27-6 win over Perry in the first week of Class 3A District 2 action.
Perry (2-1, 0-1) had taken a 6-0 lead in the second quarter, only to see Ballard (3-0, 1-0) score just before the intermission to enter the break with a 7-6 advantage. Scoring passes of 53 and of 52 yards from Max Stoltz to Reece Huen in the third period helped changed the game from a tight contest into a convincing win for the Bombers, who were helped by key penalties on Perry and by a defense that stifled the Bluejay offense throughout the contest.
A persistent rain fell for all but a brief span in the third quarter, with a wet football causing problems for both teams. Ballard fumbled away the opening kickoff, with Mark Campos falling on the ball for Perry, with questionable footing plaguing both teams until the players become used to the conditions underfoot.
Perry struggled to mount any kind of a sustained attack, with quarterback Adan Medina hitting on just 5-of-11 passes for only 23 yards. He was intercepted once.
The Bluejay ground game also found moving the ball difficult, with the team rushing 26 times for just 67 yards. Donald Chavez ran six times for 21 yards, with Reece Dunlap carrying three times for 18 yards and a score with Medina (13-15) and Campos (4-13) also involved.
Final statistics for Ballard were not yet available; ThePerryNews.com will update this story when they are.
Perry was first to move the scoreboard when Reece Dunlap ran wide left and sped past the pylon from 10 yards out midway through the second quarter. The PAT kick was blocked, leaving Perry with a 6-0 edge.
Ballard answered in the final minute with a 32-yard run, with C.J. Poots hitting the PAT try for a 7-6 Bomber lead.
With the rain finally ebbing to a soft drizzle at the start of the second half, both teams opted to take to the air, with results that immediately burned the Bluejays.
Medina dropped back and was immediately pressured while trying to throw deep to Janier Puente. The combination of a linebacker in his face and a slick ball resulted in an underthrown pass that was intercepted and returned to the Ballard 47 yard line.
The hosts counter-attacked on their first play, with Max Stoltz hitting Reece Huen down the right side line. Huen slipped a defender, then made another miss to complete a 53-yard scoring play. A missed PAT left the hosts leading, 13-6, with 8:13 left in the third.
Ballard opted for the same combination later in the period, from nearly the same place on the field. Perry cornerback Manasses Martinez was in good position and made a leaping attempt for an interception, but Huen had several inches of height advantage and simply out-leaped Martinez for the ball, then turned and trotted the remaining few yards into the end zone for a 52-yard play. Poot’s boot was good, pushing the score to 20-6 with 1:54 to play in the period.
With the offense unable to move the ball, the Perry defense — which played well through most of the game — simply began to wear down as the game wore on. The Bluejays appeared to have stifled a Bomber scoring drive when Brandon Juarez intercepted Stoltz in the front of the end zone, but a personal foul for a hands to the head on the rush to reach Stoltz overturned the play and moved the ball from the 24 to the 12 yard line. Hunter Wright scored off right tackle three plays later to push the score to 27-6 and end any hopes of a 3-0 start for the guests.
Perry will host Boone Sept. 16 in their return to the gridiron. The Toreadors (2-1, 1-0) were 29-6 winners over visiting Iowa Falls-Alden Friday. The other two D2 contests saw DC-G score an 18-12 win over Greene County while Gilbert shocked fifth-ranked Webster City, 31-25.
