El Capitan caps its football season with win over Atwater

The El Capitan High School football team closed its season on a positive note, as the Gauchos defeated Atwater 35-21 on Friday night at Dave Honey Stadium.

El Capitan scored on all four offensive possessions in the first half.

“We were able to spread them out and get a couple of our athletes in space,” said Gauchos coach Mike Machado, whose team finished the season 3-7 overall and 2-4 in the Central California Conference. “We were able to run the ball when we needed to, but most of the first half was done through the air.”

Jamie Ruiz scored two touchdowns on the ground for El Capitan. Ruiz, Travis Minor and Terris Evans all scored rushing touchdowns in the first half to give the Gauchos a 28-14 lead. The other score came on a 60-yard touchdown pass from Kevin Reid to Elijah Reid.

Alex Garcia scored three touchdowns for the Falcons (0-9, 0-5 CCC), including a 64-yard run that tied the score 7-7 in the first quarter. Garcia also returned a kickoff for a touchdown in the second half to pull Atwater within 28-21.

However, Ruiz put away the game with a 20-yard touchdown run after he moved to quarterback for the injured Kevin Reid.

The Gauchos have a bye this week.

“At this point, we played better this year and the competition level went up more this year,” Machado said. “The kids played hard. It’s another adjusting year for us as the competitive level changes, but I think we’re headed in the right direction.”

The Falcons wrap up their season with the Bloss Bowl against Buhach Colony (4-5, 2-3 CCC).

This story was originally published October 29, 2016 at 1:12 AM with the headline "El Capitan caps its football season with win over Atwater."