The Park Vista – Santaluces match up is a huge rivalry game between the two schools separated by only a couple of miles. Many players who have played in this classic have gone on to play college football for a variety of different schools across the nation.
The Chiefs were looking to rebound from losses to Spanish River and Atlantic this week, especially on Senior night. Santaluces wanted to take the bragging rights for beating their rival back to Chief Country. The Chiefs came in at a record of 3-5 and were looking to bring the woes to a stop. As for the Cobras, they came in to the game at a record of 4-5.
But it was not to be for the Chiefs. In a heartbreaking fourth quarter, the Chiefs fell to the Cobras 23-20 on a last minute touchdown by the Cobra running back.
The game was going in the Chiefs’ favor from the beginning. In the first quarter, the Chiefs came out of the gate firing, putting a touchdown on the board with 4 minutes remaining in the quarter to make it 7-0. But, an elusive Park Vista side responded in a second quarter drive with a touchdown to level the game at 7-7.
The Chiefs responded quickly to the Cobras’ touchdown to put another 7 on the board, giving Santaluces the lead at halftime.
During the halftime show, the Marching Chiefs and the Beautiful Chaos dance team performed for the crowd. And before the game, Seniors on the football team, the varsity cheerleading team, the Marching Chiefs walked across the field with their family members and were recognized for their hard work and dedication.
In the third quarter, it had seemed that the Chiefs had lost their grip on the game. Park Vista drove down the field to score a touchdown, then went for two points and converted to make it an 8 point drive rather than the usual 7 points, thus giving the Cobras a 15-14 lead.
In the fourth quarter, the Chiefs seemed to regain life and scored a touchdown to give Santaluces a 20-15 lead with 5 minutes left. For the Cobras, it was crunch time and Park Vista showed why they’ve been to the playoffs for the last couple of years. Park Vista drove down the field to score a touchdown with less than a minute left and converted another two point conversion to take a late 23-20 lead.
The Chiefs attempted to make a last minute comeback and set up a field goal with less than a second left. But, the Chiefs missed the field goal to tie the game as time expired.
Next week, the Chiefs will face off against the West Boca Bulls in the Homecoming season finale.
Final Score
Santaluces (3-6): 20
Park Vista(5-5): 23
