Westwood’s run game proved to be too much for Mesa to handle Friday night as the Warriors scored 34 second-half points to spoil the Jackrabbits' Senior Night, 34-26.

Mental errors were a major factor for both teams early on as Westwood drove down the field on its first possession of the game but had its drive halted by an interception in the end zone.

On the next possession Mesa marched down the field but committed a dead ball penalty, followed by a sack that resulted in a Jackrabbits punt.

“We were just telling them to keep their heads,” Westwood coach Kyle Ide said.  “There were a couple of cheap shots, but we just wanted to make sure we kept our heads. The second guy usually gets the call.”

The second quarter started in a 0-0 deadlock, but Westwood quarterback Manny Collier led his team the length of the field until when a failed snap resulted in a 30-yard sack and ultimately a fourth-down stop.

After a three-and-out by Mesa, Westwood again drove the length of the field but this time Collier was intercepted by Mesa’s Alec Romero, who had two interceptions on the night.

For the rest of the first half, Mesa and sophomore quarterback Gabby Mendoza failed to execute on third down, but thanks to some penalties and key interceptions, the game remained 0-0 at the half. 

“He’s (Mendoza) one of those kids that doesn’t get rattled,” Mesa coach Kap Sikahema said.  “Whether he scores eight touchdowns or throws three interceptions, he’s the same kid and that’s what I like about him.”

On the first possession of the second half, Westwood finally broke through with an incredible, video-game like touchdown run by Collier. He started left and didn’t see a hole, so he bounced it back to the right side, and the fastest man on the field would not be stopped, walking into the end zone.

“They were overpursuing their blitzes,” Collier said. “We went over the first half, and realized we just needed to get our blocks to get the run game going.”

Mesa marched right back, as the Jackrabbits kicked a field goal, followed by a safety on the next possession.  After a long punt return on the safety, Mesa finally got its first touchdown of the game on a three-yard rush by running back Boyd Mox, and gave the Jackrabbits a 12-6 lead. 

When the fourth quarter rolled around, it was all Collier as the Warriors scored 20 unanswered points and lead by 15 after a 65-yard touchdown by Westwood running back Victor Sanchez with 1:30 left in the game.

After a quick Mesa score, they failed to recover the onside kick and fell to the Warriors  34-26.

On Senior Night, Sikahema shared a touching note on a few of his players last home games.

 “Its always tough,” Sikahema said.  “I love these kids and tell them to keep their head up high and there’s more than football in their lives.”

Mesa (3-5 overall, 1-2 in region play) gets next week off with a bye on the schedule.