California High School football was back in action on Friday night against another Tri-County Conference opponent.
This time, the Pintos paid a visit to the undefeated Hallsville High School Indians. The Pintos were the clear underdogs entering the contest, not only because Hallsville was undefeated, but also because the Pintos had not defeated the Indians in football since Sept. 23, 2016.
Hallsville's win streak was to continue, as the Indians dispatched the Pintos 46-6 and dropped California's record to 5-3 on the season while remaining unblemished atop the standings.
The field conditions at Hallsville were the exact same as the field at Eldon where the Pintos played last week - a grass field that became damp and muddy from a rainstorm the day before. This, in turn, meant the football would become wet, slippery and hard to hold on to.
Both teams knew this coming into the game; the ball was only thrown 21 times combined between both teams. The running game took over the night, which played right into Hallsville's hands. The Indians used their tall and athletic running backs to put the Pintos' defense in a tailspin. California's defense had a difficult time finishing their tackles and before they knew it, Hallsville was up 16-0 after two possessions.
As the first quarter gave way to the second, the Pintos put together their best drive of the game as they carried the ball all the way to the Indians' 4-yard line. Down 24-0, the Pintos had to put the ball in the end zone, but the Indians held their ground and forced a fourth-and-goal on the 1-yard line. On the play, Pintos quarterback Calen Kruger kept the ball on a quarterback keeper but fumbled, and Hallsville appeared to have recovered the ball. That is, until it was determined that Kruger scored a touchdown before the fumble and the touchdown stood. After a failed two-point conversion, the score stood at 24-6.
On the final play of the first half, the Indians had a chance to put the ball in the end zone once more. After the play, a pair of off-setting penalties gave Hallsville another opportunity, which they would score on a 2-yard run. California headed to the locker room trailing 32-6.
In the second half, California's defense made adjustments and improvements, but the offense was ground to a halt and held scoreless in the third and fourth quarters. Hallsville maintained their control of the game and remained undefeated with a 46-6 win over the Pintos.
Pintos head coach Seth Womack said he and his team knew they were in for their biggest challenge of the season when they stepped onto Hallsville's field, and the Indians demonstrated why they were so dynamic.
"Hallsville is physical, they're fast, they're well-coached and they were 7-0 for a reason," Womack said. "They do things right. And when they execute, they play a very high caliber of football."
With senior running back Tyler Patterson out of the line-up for the rest of the season, the Pintos have followed a familiar pattern with putting the ball in the hands of fellow senior running back Enoch Dunnaway. On Friday, Dunnaway recorded 65 yards on 19 carries and was again the Pintos' leading rusher. Womack doesn't believe the team is giving Dunnaway the ball too often.
"Whether Enoch is in there or someone else is carrying the ball, I don't think they're picking that up. I just think that we've had to rely a lot on our run game," Womack said. "We've had some offensive line issues with injuries and I think we're moving past that with kids coming back and being healthy. But we've gotten a little one-dimensional. Our passing game hasn't been as effective as we would like it to be and teams are loading the box on us."
Despite the loss, there were a couple of positive takeaways for the Pintos going into their matchup with Southern Boone this week. One, in particular, was how well the Pintos' defense was able to come up with stops on a more consistent basis in the second half, Womack said.
"We said at halftime that we've got to get back to what we're doing. In the first half, my biggest criticism was that we weren't attacking as much as we normally do on offense or defense," Womack explained. "I know we're better than that and I know that our kids are tough. I want to see more of what they are, and they showed that in the second half."
California will head back home for their final game of the regular season against the Southern Boone Eagles. It will be an emotional week this week, as it will be the team's Senior Night and possibly the last time the Pintos' seniors will get to play in front of their home crowd. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at California High School.