With adversity facing the Scots late in the first half, they were trailing a rough 16-29 against the Independence Falcons. In the second half, the Scots put on a defensive effort, successfully shutting out Independence to rally for a 44-29 victory in their homecoming game.
Adrian Juarez rushed for a complete 180 and 3 touchdowns to lead the Scots rushing attack, which gained 300 yards in the game. After this game, the Scots are now 3-3 (a tie of wins and losses!) for the season.
Quarter 1
Highland had a rocky start; a fumble that Independence recovered. Highland then got a handle on their defense– they responded with a passing touchdown from JoJo Mata to Karam Safa. Independence followed up with their own passing touchdown to end the 1st quarter 7-7.
Quarter 2
To begin the 2nd quarter, Independence flaunted their first rushing touchdown of the night, taking the lead 7-14. Jojo Mata threw down the field to Manuel Veleta– even as he was heavily covered at the time, he caught in with a one-hand grab and instantly put Highland in scoring position! Manuel Veleta was later acknowledged by KBAK Fox 58 Hometown Sports for the “Exciting Play Of The Week.” Solid stuff, Manuel! Jojo Mata followed this throw-up with a QB scramble for a touchdown. Despite these powerful plays, Independence still lead 13-14 after a failed 2-point conversion.
In the next drive, Independence was forced to punt from Highland’s defense. The Independence offense followed up with a drive and a made field goal by HHS’s Peter Para to take the lead 16-14. This was all done with one minute left before the half!
Independence responds with a kickoff return for a touchdown. They skillfully manage a two-point conversion which put them up 16-22. Highland gets the ball back to out in a drive before the half but Independence picked off Jojo Mata for a pick-six to put them up 16-29 after a good extra point field goal to end the half.
Quarter 3
The Scots scored 28 unanswered points in the second half, shutting out Independence well. To start off 3rd quarter, Jojo Mata scores his second rushing touchdown on the night, edging the score closer, now 23-29. The Scots defense gets a stop and drives down the field. The drive ends with a rushing touchdown from Adrian Juarez, his first of the night. For the first time since the second quarter, Highland takes the lead with 30-29!
Highland continues to put on a defensive clinic to get the ball back on offense. This paved the way for another rushing touchdown from Adrian Juarez– extending the lead to 37-29.
Quarter 4: Closing Off
With time running down, Independence tried hard to score and make a comeback of their own. The Scot’s defense got one last stop on fourth down. Triumphantly, Adrian Juarez broke out on a run for a whopping count of three rushing touchdowns that night! This set the final score of 44-29. And while Independence made attempt to put on the final drive, Scot’s defense forced a turnover and officially put the final nail in the coffin.
Final Outcome
The Scots had a huge lead in the second half due to their stellar defensive performance and rushing attack. All of this completely shut out independence and achieved the Scots an impressive comeback score of 44-29.
The Scot's Scrapbook 