LA JARA – The season came to an end for the fourth-ranked Centauri High School football team as it lost to Holyoke 33-30 in overtime in the first round of the Class 1A state playoffs Monday at the Falcons Field.

“I love my boys,” said Centauri coach Kyle Forster. “They played their asses off.”

The Dragons had the ball first and quickly moved into Falcons territory. However, the drive ended as Donovan Jarvies intercepted Colby Weber on the Centauri 2.

Centauri punted on their first possession and Holyoke took over they its own 48. This time, the Dragons completed the drive as Trey Oakley ran 19 yards for a touchdown. Elbin Padilla made the extra point and the Dragons led 7-0.

The Falcons looked to have a promising drive going the next time they had the ball. They drove to the Holyoke 26, however, they turned the ball over on downs.

The Dragons got another drive going but it stalled at the Centauri 4 and they settled for a 19-yard field goal by Padilla.

After one possession ended with an interception and another by another turnover on downs, the Falcons finally got on the scoreboard late in the second quarter as Sean Jarvies threw a 9-yard touchdown to Carson Shawcroft. The twosome also connected on the two-point conversion.

Holyoke led 10-8 at the intermission.

Centauri had the ball first to begin the second half and it got to the end zone again. This time Parker Buhr ran five yards to the end zone. The two-point conversion was unsuccessful but Centauri had a 14-10 lead.

The Dragons answered on their next possession. This time Weber threw a 1-yard touchdown to Reid Sprague. Padilla made the extra point and Holyoke regained the lead at 17-14.

Another interception set up the Dragons’ next touchdown.  This time Weber ran 35 yards on the quarterback keeper, and Padilla again made the point-after and Holyoke extended the lead to 24-14.

Centauri narrowed its deficit early in the fourth quarter as Sean Jarvies threw a 52-yard scoring strike to Shawcroft. The two-point attempt was no good, but the lead was whittled to 24-20.

After forcing Holyoke to go three and out, the Falcons got another potential drive started. The Falcons drove the Holyoke 25, but once again turned the ball over on downs.

The Dragons punted again on their next possession and this time the Falcons were able to get back to the end zone. Sean Jarvies pitched to Buhr who then threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to Dallyn King. Jace Haslett made the extra point and Centauri regained the lead at 27-24.

Holyoke got a good return on the ensuing kickoff and a facemask penalty put the Dragons on the Centauri 41. Holyoke drove to the Falcons 9, but the Dragons tied the score on Padilla’s 24-yard field goal with 38 seconds left in regulation.

Centauri tried another drive but it stalled at the Holyoke 35 and the game went into overtime.

The Falcons had the ball first in the extra session but gained only four yards. Haslett gave the lead back to Centauri with a 22-yard field goal.

The Falcons looked to have a break on Holyoke’s overtime possession as the Dragons were called for a holding penalty. However, Weber scored on a 17-yardrun two plays later for the game-winning touchdown.

The Falcons accumulated 431 yards of total offense with 222 coming on the ground. Buhr led the Falcons with 196 yards on 34 carries.

Sean Jarvies completed 16 out of 31 passes for 200 yards. Haslett led the receiving corps with five catches for 34 yards. Shawcroft had four receptions for 70 yards, and Leland Chacon had four catches for 58 yards.

Holyoke had 312 total yards – 171 rushing and 141 passing. Oakley led the ground game with 97 yards on nine carries, and Weber had 67 yards on 17 carries.

Weber also completed 15 of 30 passes for 141 yards. Sprague had 12 receptions for 115 yards.

Centauri finishes the season with eight wins and two losses. It loses only five seniors to graduation.

“I couldn’t ask for a better team,” Forster said. “They were awesome. Amazing.”

Two local teams win, two more lose

Two high school football teams from the San Luis Valley won their first round playoff games, while two more were defeated.

On Saturday, Monte Vista lost to Meeker 44-34 on the road. The Pirates finished with a record of seven wins and three losses.

On Sunday, Alamosa was defeated the Lamar 14-7 in a road game. The Mean Moose had a 6-4 record.

On Monday, Sierra Grande was a 52-45 winner over Eads at home, and Sanford defeated Springfield 20-18 also at home.

Sierra Grande (9-0) will travel to Otis on Saturday. Sanford (7-3) will be on the road to top-ranked Haxtun also on Saturday.

Holyoke 33, Centauri 30

Holyoke 7 3 14 3 6 – 33

Centauri 0 8 6 13 3 – 30

First quarter

H – Oakley 19 run (Padilla kick), 4:56

Second quarter

H – Padilla 19 FG, 11:05

C – Shawcroft 9 pass from S. Jarvies (Shawcroft pass from Jarvies), 0:07

Third quarter

C – Buhr 5 run (pass failed), 9:13

H – Sprague 1 pass from Weber (Padilla kick), 4:36

H – Weber 35 run (Padilla kick), 3:00

Fourth quarter

C – Shawcroft 52 pass from S. Jarvies (pass failed), 11:33

C – King 9 pass from Buhr (Haslett kick), 3:19

H – Padilla 24 FG, 0:38

Overtime

C – Haslett 22 FG

H – Weber 17 run