Rios and Company Thrill Homecoming Crowd in Shutout

WALL, TX — Like every game this season, Wall’s defense propelled them to victory.  The Hawks shut Sonora out and outplayed them at every turn.  Wall was just too talented.

The game started off perfectly for the raucous homecoming crowd.  Sonora received the opening kickoff and only returned it to the 11 yard line after bobbling the catch.  Four plays later it was Wall ball on the Sonora 47 due to a short punt by the Broncos.

Chase Rios got things started with runs of eight and ten yards. Kye Herbert took three straight handoffs, and the Hawks were on the four yard line.  Quarterback Mason Fuchs barreled into the end zone on a keeper to take the lead 6-0.  The two-point conversion attempt was no good.  

Wall’s defense proved too much for the one-dimensional Sonora offense.  The Broncos ran the ball three consecutive times for five total yards before they had to punt again.  This time, Rios caught the ball and took off for the end zone.  No one could catch him, and Wall now led 12-0 with 4:29 left in the first.

Sonora tried mixing things up on its next drive.  Quarterback Preston Gonzalez found team captain Brock Aschenbeck in the flat for a 15 yard gain.  This little victory was short-lived, however, as penalties and short runs killed the drive.

Sonora’s defense showed some backbone on Wall’s next possession and sacked Fuchs on 4 and 20 to start the second quarter.  The teams traded punts until Wall pounced on a Sonora fumble.  Rios took the next play 34 yards up the middle to extend the lead to 19-0.

It looked as if that would be the score going into halftime, but Wall punched the ball out of running back Wilson Johnson’s hands as Sonora tried to run the clock out with 10 seconds left.  Junior defensive back Justis Watkins caught the loose ball and evaded tacklers for a touchdown as time expired.  26-0 Wall at halftime.

The second half was merely a formality.  Sonora’s entire offense was three yard run, two yard run, three yard run.  They never had a chance, because they could not throw the ball or stop the clock.  They tried feeding Aschenbeck, but, besides a 47 yard run in the third quarter, he was held to modest gains.  He was Wall’s only threat, and they honed in on him.

The only score of the second half came midway through the fourth.  Wall started on its own 38.  Herbert broke a 24 yard run to start.  Joe Walker and Fuchs followed it up with back to back 13 yard gains to make it 1 and 10 from the Sonora 12.  The drive stalled after an unsportsmanlike penalty turned 4 and 4 into 4 and 19.  The Hawks decided to go for it, and Fuchs found Connor Dierschke wide open in the corner of the end zone.  

Fuchs and the offense came back onto the field one last time with 2 seconds to go to take a knee.  

Final Score Wall 33 Sonora 0.