Central earns No. 3 seed with win over South

“That wasn’t even the play we called,” second-year Central coach Mike Apodaca said. “(Macleary) just checked based on the coverage South was in. It was a decision by him, and a great way to start the game.”

The win earned the Indians (6-3) the No. 3 seed for the Class 4A playoff. They open the bracket by hosting sixth-seeded Rock Springs (5-4).

South (1-8) was game early, answering Central’s opening drive by marching 52 yards on 10 play to the Central 18-yard line. The 6-minute drive ended when Indians sophomore Nathanial Talich intercepted a Braeden Hughes pass and returned it 20 yards.

Central pulled ahead 13-0 when Macleary connected with junior Brady Storebo for a 2-yard touchdown on the resulting drive.

Indians junior Kenyon Lewis recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff, and junior running back Carter Lobatos scored a 22-yard rushing touchdown on the very next play for a 21-0 lead.

“We made too many mistakes,” Bison coach Dan Gallas said. “We fumbled snaps, threw interceptions and missed opportunities. We’re a very young football team, and we’re still learning.”

Central pushed its lead to 28-0 when Storebo and Macleary hooked up for a 3-yard score.

South got on the scoreboard with 54 seconds remaining in the first half. Hughes was hit as he threw a pass to junior Jadyn Cummings, who fought his way into the end zone for a 13-yard touchdown.

The Indians led 28-8 at halftime.

The Bison fumbled their opening snap of the second half. Central turned Tanner Bullock’s fumble recovery into a 35-8 lead seven plays later. Macleary found Johnson over the middle for an 11-yard touchdown to end the drive.

Indians sophomore Eli Castillo picked off Hughes on South’s next drive. Lobatos ended the extra possession with a 26-yard touchdown run that put Central up 41-8 with 4:38 remaining in the third quarter.

“We did a pretty good job of playing at the level we expected to regardless of what the circumstances were,” said Lobatos, who finished the night with 245 yards and two touchdowns. “Offensively, everything went just about right and clicked. We had the right play calls at the right times, and it couldn’t have gone better.”

Johnson later added an interception of his own, giving the Bison five turnovers on the night.

The Indians, though, were not happy with their effort defensively.

“We left a lot out there,” Talich said. “Stopping the run was our biggest focus, and we weren’t as disciplined as we should have been. We’re going to have to fix that next week.”

Central sophomore Jackson Davis opened the fourth quarter with a 42-yard touchdown run that put his side up 48-8.

Hughes added a 10-yard scoring scamper for South, which dressed only 25 players.

“We were hit hard by injuries all year, but our kids never quit,” Gallas said. “We came out in the second half when the score was 28-8 (and) were confident we were going to go down, get a score and be right back in the game.

“It just wasn’t meant to be.”

Johnson finished with 108 receiving yards and two touchdowns for Central. Cummings and senior Zayne Tinajero had interceptions for South.

CENTRAL 48, SOUTH 16

Cheyenne South…… 0 8 0 8 – 16

Cheyenne Central…… 21 7 13 7 – 48

SCORING SUMMARY

First Quarter

CC: Johnson 60 pass from Macleary (Tippets kick), 11:44.

CC: Bra. Storebo 2 pass from Macleary (Tippets kick failed), 3:08.

CC: Lobatos 22 run (Lobatos run), 2:50.

Second Quarter

CC: Bra. Storebo 3 pass from Macleary (Tippet kick), 11:44.

CS: Cummings 13 pass from Hughes (Hughes run), 0:54.

Third Quarter

CC: Johnson 11 pass from Macleary (Tippets kick), 10:02.

CC: Lobatos 26 run (Tippets kick failed), 4:38.

Fourth Quarter

CC: Davis 42 run (Tippets kick), 11:51.

CS: Hughes 10 run (Wright run), 3:47.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing

Cheyenne South: Wright 4-16, Hughes 14-18, Hanson 14-38, Cummings 9-54. Cheyenne Central: Talich 1-13, Lobatos 16-245, Macleary 1-(minus-11), Davis 6-75, Nichols 1-5.

Passing

Cheyenne South: Hughes 8-18-3 118. Cheyenne Central: Maclaery 9-19-2 171, Feezer 1-3-0 4, Shake 0-1-0 0.

Receiving

Cheyenne South: Cummings 1-15, Scott 1-43, Barto 2-15, Mascarenas 2-29, Hanson 1-4, J. Moyte 1-12. Cheyenne Central: Talich 2-12, Johnson 3-108, Bro. Storebo 1-14, Bra. Storebo 4-41.