Carson’s DC Quintana drives for additional yards after a reception with Galena’s Jameson Bogart and Maclain Mcbride trying to close him down during the game between the Galena Grizzlies and the Carson High Senators.
Photo by Jeff Mulvihill, Jr. | InstaImage.
The Carson High football team is still trying to put together its first complete game of the 2022 season. On Friday in south Reno, it looked like Galena got there first.The Grizzlies, despite committing five turnovers, won their first 5A North game since the 2019 season with a 27-10 win over the Senators in the league opener for both teams.Galena, coming off winless seasons in both 2020 and 2021, outscored Carson, 20-0, in the second half.
Friday’s loss dropped Carson to 1-3 overall and 0-1 in 5A North games. Galena improved to 3-1 and 1-0.
For the Senators, a strong first half was undone by a sloppier second half. The Senators took a 10-7 lead into halftime after forcing four turnovers — including intercepting three passes — and scoring on a 1-yard run from Marcus Montes and a 31-yard field goal from Isaac Avina.
“We did make mistakes in the second half, so it was a tale of two halves for us,” Carson head coach Ryan Boshard said. “We’ve got to find a way to get better and keep those first-half drives (going).”
Galena looked like a different team in the second half, taking better care of the ball and mounting long drives to first take the lead and then place all the pressure onto the Senators’ backs. The Grizzlies took the lead in the third quarter on a short TD pass from Ben Primka to Ben Imse, then got a tough 11-yard run from Colson Kermode and an inside toss from Primka to Jameson Bogart with less than a minute to play.
Carson’s Parker Story (6), Odin Riley (56) and JT Heaton (42) bring down Galena’s JoJo Czyz during Friday's game.When the horn sounded, the Grizzlies had their first 5A North win since beating Douglas, 25-24, in October of 2019.
“They’re a good, quality team; they’ve put together a good team this year,” Boshard said of Galena. “I’m happy to see where (coach Aaron Cook) has brought his team. So give them all the credit.”
Montes was Carson’s workhorse Friday, earning all of his 54 yards against a solid Grizzlies defense. Following a fumble recovery from the Carson defense, he opened the scoring with a 1-yard plunge with 4:35 left in the first quarter.
Quarterback Chris Guerrero added 34 rushing yards and finished 7-of-14 for 78 yards through the air.
Carson’s Kincaid Gill tackles Galena’s Colson Kermode during Friday's game.Defensively, the Senators had a nose for the ball, picking off three passes and jumping on two fumbles. Making big plays is something the unit has emphasized, Boshard said.
“That’s every day in practice, the mentality we have,” Boshard said. “Stand him (ball-carrier) up, get that ball out of there.”
For Galena, Jojo Czyz ran 23 times for 88 yards, with Kermode adding 58 yards, often out of a Wildcat look. Primka hit 14 of his 26 passes for 148 yards and two scores.
“We kind of just took a deep breath, restarted, and then got our stuff together,” Kermode said of Galena’s night-and-day performance from the first half to the second. “We had a good talk in the fieldhouse and just pulled together as a team.”
Carson returns home next week to face Reed for homecoming; Galena goes on the road for the first time in the 2022 season to face Douglas.
Next up
Who: Carson at Reed
When: Friday, 7 p.m.
Notable: Reed beat Damonte Ranch, 37-21, on Friday
