Bernalillo blanks Moriarty; remains unbeaten

BERNALILLO— The Bernalillo football team ran through Moriarty at Spartan Stadium Friday, Sept. 13, and kept their perfect season alive. The Spartans were near-perfect on both sides of the ball and improve to 4-0 on the season. The final: Bernalillo 42 (4-0), Moriarty.

In the first quarter, the "Goonsquad" Spartan defense immediately set the tone with a textbook tackle by defensive back Christian Sanchez that shook the ball loose, and nose tackle Jaden Lovato was able to make the recovery for a Spartan turnover. The Spartans' defense had a strict "no fly zone" and only allowed 16 passing yards on the night. The Spartans (4-0) were able to blank the Moriarty Pintos (2-2) offense and log their first defensive shutout of the season.

Through four games, the Bernalillo Spartans defense has only allowed 32 points for an average of eight points per game.

By the second quarter, the Spartans were firing on all cylinders, and that included a stellar run from Bernalillo quarterback Uriel Castro, who scored on a 22-yard rushing touchdown.

Castro played his best game of the season and had a perfect passer rating, 317 passing yards and contributed to six touchdowns (three on the ground and three through the air). Most importantly, Castro played a clean game and did not throw any interceptions.

Junior Kenneth Saiz also had his best game of the season, as a receiver, and had two touchdown receptions along with 88 receiving yards. One of the more memorable plays of the night was an intermediate pass from Castro to Saiz, who caught the ball, made a nice cut inside, which caused two Moriarty defenders to run into each other, and after that, Saiz jogged to the end zone with no Moriarty defender in sight.

The other Spartan player who scored was tight end Ulisses Castro, who finished with 61 receiving yards on four snags. Old reliable receiver Joseph Duran also had a nice game, which included a 53-yard reception and 88 total receiving yards. Duran leads Bernalillo receivers in receiving yards this season (233 yards).

Bernalillo had four straight home games to start season and will now hit the road for three of their next four games, including a clash at unbeaten Espanola Valley (4-0) at 6 p.m. Sept. 27.

Their next game at Spartan Stadium will be at 6 p.m. Oct. 4 against Kirkland Central.