LA JARA – The fourth-ranked Centauri High School football team had a classic match-up when it hosted ninth-ranked Monte Vista Friday at the CHS field.

The Falcons barely hung on for the victory as they defeated the Pirates by a score of 20-18.

“It was a great game,” said Centauri coach Kyle Forster. “Monte is a great team and they’re very well-coached. But we made plays when we had to. It was a great way to play.”

“It’s what a championship game come down to,” said Monte Vista coach Manny Wasinger. “It came down to a last-second field goal. Our kids battled and we had to fight some field position issues in the first quarter, then we settled down. The kids were a little bit uptight to start, but once they got playing, we played well. Just missed a couple of opportunities we didn’t take advantage of and we got to get our kicking game back. We can’t be going for two all the time. We’ll get Jeremiah (McComas) healthy and hopefully he’ll bring our kicking game back in the playoffs.”

The teams punted on their first possession, but Centauri got on the scoreboard the second time it had the ball. Sean Jarvies tossed a 6-yard touchdown pass to Carson Shawcroft, however, the point-after attempt was missed and the Falcons had a 6-0 lead.

The Pirates got into Falcons territory on its next possession as they drove to the Centauri 31. However, Monte Vista turned the ball over on downs.

A Monte Vista turnover set up Centauri’s next scoring drive. Shawcroft ran 10 yards on the reverse sweep, and Marcos Atencio ran in the two-point conversion to extend the Falcons’ lead to 14-0.

The Pirates took advantage of a takeaway of its own to get on the scoreboard just before the end of the first half. Azariah Hurtado took a direct snap from center and plowed one yard into the end zone. The extra point attempt was unsuccessful and the Falcons led 14-6 at halftime.

Monte Vista had the ball first to begin the second half and it wasted little time in scoring again as Kelby Mondragon ran 44 yards for a touchdown. The two-point try failed and Centauri’s lead was 14-12.

The Falcons looked as though they were going to score again on their first possession of the second half. They drove to the Pirates’ 10 but turned the ball over on downs.

Centauri scored late in the third quarter as Dallyn King ran 50 yards to the end zone. After an offside penalty, the Falcons went for two, but came up short and they led 20-12 at the end of the third quarter.

The Pirates closed the deficit midway through the fourth quarter as Manny Jiron ran in a 10-yard quarterback keeper. The two-point conversion attempt was no good and the Falcons led 20-18 with 5:46 left in the game.

Centauri attempted another scoring drive and advanced to the Monte Vista 30-yard line. However, the Falcons turned the ball over on downs with 1:49 remaining.

The Pirates got into Falcons’ territory as Manny Jiron threw a 52-yard pass to Domyon Naranjo to set up Monte Vista at the Centauri 18. The Pirates got as close at the Falcons’ 17 and attempted a 34-yard field goal by McComas. However, the kick was wide left with three seconds to play.

Centauri had 251 yards of total offense with 184 coming on the ground. King led the running game with 83 yards on eight carries, followed by Leland Chacon with 50 yards on 11 carries, and Atencio with 49 yards on 11 carries.

Sean Jarvies completed seven of 16 passes for 67 yards. King was the leading receiver with three catches for 30 yards. Shawcroft had two receptions for 15 yards.

Monte Vista accumulated 299 total yards – 174 rushing and 125 passing. Mondragon was the top rusher with 74 yards on 12 carries, followed by Judah Howe with 47 yards on 10 carries.

Manny Jiron completed eight of 14 pass attempts for 125 yards. Naranjo had two receptions for 56 yards, Mondragon had two for 47 yards and Hurtado had two catches for 20 yards.

Centauri (8-1, 5-0) will host the Class 1A state playoff game this Saturday as it will face North Fork. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.

“We still have a sour taste in our mouths from last year, so we’re just going to have to work hard and come out ready and prepared.”

Monte Vista (6-3, 4-1) also qualified for the state playoffs but it will travel to Colorado Springs Christian on Friday with kickoff slated for 6 p.m.

“Where they send us, we’ll go play,” Wasinger said.”

Centauri 20, Monte Vista 18

Monte Vista 0 6 6 6 – 18

Centauri 6 8 6 0 – 20

First quarter

C – Shawcroft 6 pass from S. Jarvies (kick failed), 6:38

Second quarter

C – Shawcroft 10 run (Atencio kick), 9:34

MV – Hurtado 1 run (kick failed), 0:52

Third quarter

MV – Mondragon 44 run (run failed), 9:47

C – King 50 run (run failed), 1:10

Fourth quarter

MV – M. Jiron 10 run (pass failed), 5:46