Holbrook and Monument Valley struggled through a game of turnovers on Sept. 4, at Roadrunner Stadium, in which the Mustangs prevailed 20-8.
The visitors’ first score came at the hands of Holbrook’s offense. After picking up a first down with a penalty inside their own 35-yard line, two plays later Holbrook put the ball on the turf on a bad exchange between the quarterback and running back. The Mustangs scooped it up, returning it 28 yards for the first 6 points of the game.
Sophomore quarterback Drayden Baldonado found Dustin Tsabetsaye for a 29-yard catch in traffic, resulting in Holbrook’s lone score of the night. The 2-point conversion run by Ordell Laughter put Holbrook on top 8-6 midway through the second quarter.
That lead evaporated quickly with the Mustangs returning the ensuing kickoff 85 yards for the score. The conversion run was good and the Mustangs took the lead 14-8.
Holbrook struggled with turnovers and a sluggish offense through the rest of the game, failing to find the end zone again. Monument scored the game’s final points on a 30-yard run with just over five minutes left in the third quarter, securing the 20-8 win.
Baldonado threw for 95 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. He carried the ball 3 times, gaining just 2 yards with a fumble. Adian Stump had zero yards of completion and had a fumble.
Laughter carried the ball 16 times for 58 yards and had 1 catch for 4 yards. Damien Ohlson had 11 carries for 10 yards and 4 fumbles. He returned 1 kick for 15 yards. Tsabetsaye had 4 catches totaling 82 yards and carried 5 times for 12 yards with a fumble. Roman Candelaria carried twice for 7 yards. Jeremiah Ross had 6 carries for 11 yards. Myles Nockideneh had one 4-yard catch. Kevin Brock and Nathaniel Chatto each had 1 reception.
Holbrook finished with 95 yards passing and 100 yards rushing.
Laughter led the defense with 5 tackles. Valencia Ochoa had 2 solo and 6 assisted. Brock, Ohlson, Ochoa, and Tsabetsaye each recovered a Mustang fumble.
The loss dropped Holbrook to 0-3 on the season.
