Kirtland Central squares off with Pagosa Springs on homecoming night
7:58 p.m. -- HALFTIME, Pagosa Springs 42, Kirtland Central 0. And that's a wrap for me because this game is over.
7:56 p.m. -- For the first time in the game, Kirtland Central got positive yards on back-to-back offensive plays but the drive was stopped after a long pass was intercepted down the middle of the field. The Pirates take over near midfield with 4:13 left in the half and already leading 42-0. Aaron Aucoin sprinted down the sideline for a 40-yard gain, putting the ball inside the red zone. The Pirates couldn't punch it in from there, settling for a 32-yard field goal attempt which sailed wide right.
7:47 p.m. -- Kirtland Central got a little positive yardage on their next drive, thanks to a 13-yard pass reception, but the drive quickly stalled with back-to-back no gains followed by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on the Broncos which backed them up to their own 15. They'll punt again from the shadow of their own end zone. The punt is blocked and Pagosa Springs recovers in the end zone to go up 42-0 with 7:44 left in the first half.
7:41 p.m. -- Pagosa Springs finally started a drive on their side of the field for the first time tonight, but were already driving when the first quarter mercifully came to a close for Kirtland Central. Pagosa leading 28-0. The Broncos quickly got away from their running game and have resorted to deep routes with little to no impact. On the Pirates fifth possession of the game, they've chewed up yards both with the running and passing game. Aaron Aucoin found Seth Aucoin for a 24-yard TD reception, giving the Pirates a 35-0 lead with 11:10 left in the second quarter. Running clock starts after the kickoff.
7:30 p.m. -- After another three-and-out by the Broncos, Pagosa Springs wasted little time expanding their lead with a 21-yard touchdown pass from Aucoin to Riley Laugel. The Pirates are up 28-0 with 2:23 left in the first quarter.
SILVER leads Bloomfield 14-0 after one quarter.
7:23 p.m. -- After back-to-back deep routes from the Broncos fell well out of range, special teams lets them down again after a blocked punt was recovered by Pagosa Springs inside KC's 5-yard line. Three plays later, quarterback Aaron Aucoin ran into the end zone to give the Pirates a 21-0 with 4:32 left in the first quarter.
7:17 p.m. -- Kirtland Central finds themselves down 14-0 just a bit less than five minutes into the ballgame. Pagosa Springs took advantage of short fields off turnovers to get a quick pair of rushing touchdowns. After a couple of big running plays from Bryle Matthews, the Broncos did manage to move the ball a bit on their third drive from scrimmage. Penalties and poor offensive line play have hampered Kirtland Central thus far.
6:45 p.m. -- We're gonna head downstairs for pregame festivities and early game photos. We'll update the blog as soon as we get back into the pressbox.
KIRTLAND − It's homecoming night for the Kirtland Central High School football team, and they're facing Pagosa Springs in the final non-district game of the season for the 3-2 Broncos.
We'll have live updates from the game as well as updates from games across the state involving San Juan County teams.
Yazzie to be honored in Gold Star Family salute before game
The family of Kirtland Central High School alumni Sgt. Clifton Yazzie will have a special Gold Star Family Salute and motorcycle salute before the homecoming game on Friday night.
Yazzie graduated from Kirtland Central in 2001 and was a member of the state championship basketball team his senior year. In 2006, Yazzie passed away during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The ceremony will take place following the coin toss from the mother of Yazzie, Mrs. Janette Yazzie, and his two children, Chaynitta and Cayden Yazzie. After the national anthem, veterans and the father of Yazzie, C.Y. Yazzie will start the game with a Gold Star Family motorcycle salute outside the football stadium, circle around the football field, and exit the east gates of the football stadium.
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Previewing tonight's game
Kirtland Central (3-2) vs. Pagosa Springs (0-5)
The Kirtland Central High School football team faces their final non-district rival this season when they host winless Pagosa Springs on Friday night at Bill Cawood Field.
The Broncos are coming off a romping 50-14 win on the road last weekend over Shiprock. Running backs Demusico Edsitty and Bryle Matthews each ran for three touchdowns in the win while sophomore Payton Mike recorded more than 100 yards in total offense.
Pagosa Springs is coming off back-to-back double digit losses, most recently getting shut out on the road 28-0 to unbeaten Delta High School. Currently the third-ranked team in Colorado's Class 2A classification according to MaxPreps, the Pirates offense is led by junior running back Gavin Lindahl, with more than 330 rushing yards.
The Broncos and Pirates will be meeting Friday night on the gridiron for the third time over the past 12 seasons, with Pagosa Springs winning their most recent showdown, last season at home by a final of 41-30.
This article originally appeared on Farmington Daily Times: Broncos vs. Pirates updates live from Kirtland Central High School
