Lovington routs Portales in 4A final, claims school's 20th championship
Nov. 25—In a way, it made perfect sense. The best team from the state's toughest district finished the season as New Mexico's Class 4A football champion.
That would be the second-seeded Lovington Wildcats, who on Saturday went on the road and demolished district rival Portales 57-21 in the 4A final at Greyhound Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Senior quarterback Wyatt Gomez was clearly the offensive MVP of this postseason for the Wildcats (10-3). He threw for five touchdown passes in the semifinals against Silver, then chucked five more (with over 300 passing yards) on Saturday against the fourth-seeded Rams (11-2), whose only two losses this season were at the hands of Lovington.
"From the very beginning, we came at them and played very, very well," Lovington coach Anthony Gonzales said in a phone interview. "We established the run off the bat, which was a reflection of our O-line."
Senior receiver Cesar Gonzalez was perhaps most crucial in the Lovington pass game with multiple scores.
Lovington had the first two touchdowns of the game, and the Wildcats were nursing a 22-7 lead in the late stages of the first half when they essentially put Portales away.
Lovington struck for two scores in a span of 1:25 in the final 2 1/2 minutes of the second quarter, raced out to a 36-7 lead at halftime and more or less got to do a victory lap in the second half as the program won its 20th championship.
Only one New Mexico program has enjoyed more success in championship games than Lovington: rival Artesia, which captured its 32nd title on Saturday.
"Through the semifinals, I felt like we hadn't played our best football yet," Gonzales said. "We played our very best football today, and I think that's a direct reflection of the 18 seniors we have on our football team."
Lovington has won the 4A title in two of the last three seasons. Portales entered Saturday having given up only 84 points in its first 12 games.
