Coming into the game, the Spartans had not been challenged at home as they looked to face off against the San Angelo Central Bobcats Friday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. Sept. 20, at the SISD Student Activities Center.

The Spartans offense came out once again on a tear in the first half, as has been the story in each of the two homes gans and the today’s first half.

They took control early with 22 straight points in the second quarter and a 40-24 lead against the Bobcats. But in the second half, the offense went ice cold as they did not score once throughout the entirety of the half.

“We came out with just the intensity we needed to, and we were executing well in the first half,” said senior quarterback Sebastian Ochoa on his team’s performance in the first half. “And did all we could in the first half and played really hard.”

On the defensive end, it was a different story, as the Spartans could not hold the Bobcats back when it came to passing the ball, resulting in 16 points from San Angelo in the first half alone.

The defensive struggles seem to happen more in the first half as the Spartans could not stop the Bobcats’ offense which erased a 20-point advantage the Spartans built.

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Bobcats took the lead and eventually the big road win.

“I think we got in our own way, we got in our own heads thinking it was going to be a piece of cake and I mean that’s what got us in the end,” senior wide receiver A.J. Salazar said.

Ochoa lead the offense as he was involved in all of the Spartans’ five touchdowns in the game, and scoring two of them himself on quarterback carries. During the fourth quarter of the contest, Ochoa suffered a knee injury to his left leg and was taken out, which was a devastating blow to the Spartans’ offense.

“I just had a quick cramp, and it got to me,” Ochoa said. “I just had to finish, and coach always talks about finishing and I know I had to finish for my guys.”

Head coach Mark Torres was disappointed but took total accountability for the loss to the Bobcats.

“I got outcoached, one hundred percent outcoached, you know their head coach is a championship-level coach, our head coach is not, it really is that simple,” Torres said. “And our kids everything we asked them to do, absolutely everything, so it comes down to coaching, and they’re at a certain level, they’ve had the success, they’ve had and we’re not there yet, end of story.”

Next up for the Spartans, after a short week of preparation, Pebble Hills looks to square things off with a rematch against the Eastlake Falcons Thursday, Sept. 26 at the SAC. Last year, Ochoa launched a pass attempt before time expired to win the game, but the last-minute attempt failed and wide receiver Isaiah Davis dropped the pass. Pebble Hills looks to return the favor this year.