Monte Vista runs into 2nd round of 1A football playoffs with win over CSCS

COLORADO SPRINGS – Monte Vista is well aware that of its reputation as a running team. But it was Azariah Hurtado’s two receptions that truly put wind in the Pirates’ sails.

He picked off CSCS quarterback Fisher Tenpas in the second quarter and then caught a long touchdown pass from Manny Jiron on the first play of the fourth as the Pirates beat the Lions 21-0 in the first round of the Class 1A football playoffs.

Of the two receptions, it was the interception that was maybe the most impressive. CSCS had just one drive in the first quarter, resulting in a 3-and-out, then tried to ignite a spark on the first play of its second drive. The pass from Tenpas was hauled in by Hurtado with just one arm, and the ensuing drive saw Judah Howe punch in a 4-yard touchdown run.

“I just read the play very well,” Hurtado said. “I made a break on the ball and just had a one-handed catch. It’s up there [as one of my best picks ever].”

The Pirates (7-3 overall) had a clear game plan coming into Mountain Lions Stadium, and for the first half, it worked better than expected. They chewed up clock with a sustained running attack and held CSCS (6-4) to just seven offensive plays in the first two quarters.

They had two full drives, going 3-and-out in both and then Hurtado’s interception.

“We knew as explosive as they were passing that we would have to control the clock and keep that offense on the sideline,” coach Manny Wasinger said. “Running the football is what we do best and we had a lot of success. Our offensive line did a really nice job.”

Even the first drive of the game, which resulted in zero points, served a purpose. The Pirates ate up about half the first quarter and even though CSCS stopped them on fourth down, they had grown confident that the ground attack was going to be successful.

“We drove the ball all the way down the field and they stopped us on the 5-yard line,” Howe said. “So we knew we could drive the ball all the way up there. Just run up the middle. It worked for us. We considered that a success.”

Howe’s touchdown in the second quarter felt like a two-score lead considering how quickly the clock was evaporating during the first half.

The Lions shifted to more of a running attack in the second half, which got the offense in rhythm for a bit. They picked up their first fresh set of downs of the game with 7:40 left in the third quarter.

But even with solving that problem, others persisted. The Lions struggled to move the ball into the red zone and realizing that their chances to pull even were going to be limited, they were forced to go for it on fourth down several times.

They went 0-for-4 on fourth down conversions in the second half.

“We were able to control field position because of that,” Wasinger said.

Hurtado’s touchdown reception on the first play of the fourth quarter put the game firmly in hand and Domyon Naranjo’s pick-6 late in the game sealed the victory.

This is the first playoff win for the Pirates since 2022 when they beat Holyoke 28-21 as the No. 8 seed. Their reward that year was a showdown with eventual state champion, Limon.

And as luck would have it as the No. 10 seed this year, a win puts them in the second round to face the winner of the No. 15 and No. 2 seed. That No. 2 seed is Limon.

If there is something that Monte Vista can learn from its Round 1 win, it’s that it’ll be tough for any team to score a lot of points if it’s running under 10 plays per half.

These are the matchups that make playoff football fun.