Windsor runs through Gauchos in the second half

Casa Grande’s Gauchos let the cats out of the bag in the second half last week, losing their opening football-season game to Windsor’s Jaguars, 30-22.

Playing before a good-sized crowd on Windsor’s fraying field, the Gauchos led and dominated through the first half before everything dissolved in the second segment.

During those decisive final two periods, both Gaucho front lines - offense and defense- were knocked back on their heels by the aroused Jaguar fronts.

In three dominating second-half possessions, Puma backs, led by Lorenzo Leon, sliced through gaping holes in the Casa front for three touchdowns and the ball game.

Unofficially, Windsor finished with 275 rushing yards, running off 71 plays to 52 for Casa Grande.?On the other side of the football, Casa Grande, after showing potential for a quick-strike passing attack in the first half, allowed Windsor rushers to reside in quarterback Jason Bosarge’s face through a disastrous third quarter.

Despite the strong Jaguar pass rush in the second half, Bosarge had an overall outstanding game, completing 20 of 36 passing attempts for 212 yards and three touchdowns for an overall quarterback rating of 100.7.

All three of his scoring throws went to Dominic Mchale, who caught nine passes in the game for 87 yards.

Casa, however, never did get a running game out of low gear. Junior Matt Herrera carried 10 times, but generally found no where to run, gaining just 25 yards.

“They beat us up front,” said Casa Grande coach Denis Brunk. “We may have gotten over confident after the first half.”

The second half was in sharp contrast to the first that ended with the Gauchos in front, 14-7, and feeling like the lead should have been greater.

In their first possession of the new season, Casa Grande marched 70 yards, getting the touchdown on a 25-yard connection from Bosarge to Mchale in a preview of things to come.

Penalties and a swarming Casa Grande defense kept Windsor bottled up through the first quarter, but early in the second, on a fourth-down play, Windsor’s offense line gave quarterback Jaydien Henderson time enough to read a short novel before he hit Jake Seivers for a 15-yard touchdown to tie the game.

Casa marched right back, and snared momentum with an 80-yard march that featured a 28-yard Bosarge to Jordan Gramajo connection to set up a 15-yard pass to Mchale for his second touchdown.

That was it for the first half scoring, but the Gauchos left the field feeling pretty good about the situation.

It didn’t take long for things to change. The Jaguars simply ran the football right through the Gauchos on drives of 61, 53 and 48 yards with Leon scoring to culminate the first two drives and Jerimiah Pignataro ending the third from four yards out.

In the midst of all the bullying, the Windsor defense pinned Casa back to its 11-yard line, and a fourth-down punt sailed over the punter’s head for a two-point safety.

Down, 30-14, with just five minutes to argue, Casa Grande battled back.

Bosarge scrambled and threw his team 80 yards in less than two minutes. A 25-yard completion to Mchale helped as did two pass interference calls on the Jaguars. Mchale’s third touchdown snare came from eight yards out on a perfect peg from Bosarge.

A two-point conversion throw from Bosarge to Mchale cut the Windsor lead to 30-22, and made it a potential one score (with conversion) ball game.

The Casa Grande defense came up big as Windsor tried to run out the clock, shoving to the Casa Grande 36-yard line before the Gaucho defenders rose to stop a fourth-down play two inches short.

But by then, time was an even bigger Gaucho enemy than the Windsor defense.

They had 24 seconds to go 67 yards. They give it a good try.

A late hit on Bosarge helped, but a pair of pass connections got them only to the Windsor 43 where there was time for only a desperation throw for Gramajo. He was surrounding by the entire Windsor student body, and the pass was swatted to the ground, leaving the Gauchos to look toward Montgomery at home Friday night for their first win.

Despite Windsor’s strong running game in the second half, Casa Grande did have some impressive defensive efforts. Linebacker Jack Green was, at times, a one-man roadblock. He finished with 11 solo tackles. Cornerback Aaron Krupinsky took up right where he left off last season with nine tackles, six solo, and defensive back Herrera made eight tackles.