SAN BENITO, October 22, 2005 — The torch may have been passed.

Facing the defending District 32-5A champions, Los Fresnos went to the ‘Dogpound’ and escaped with a thrilling 45-44 win over San Benito on Friday night.

The victory now puts the Falcons (4-1 in District 32-5A, 7-1 overall) in a tie for first place with Harlingen, who defeated Porter on Friday. The Greyhounds (3-2, 5-3) now have lost their last two district matches and now find themselves against the wall as they head into the “Battle of Arroyo” against the Cardinals in Week 9 at Boggus Stadium.

Los Fresnos also snapped San Benito’s nine-game winning streak at home which dated back to last year.

It was a game that featured big plays and momentum changes by both teams, but the Falcons came through when it mattered most. Trailing 44-38 with 2:07 left in the game, quarterback Brandon Kretz (25-of-38, 374 yards, 5 touchdowns and one interception) found wide receiver Esia Rivera for a five-yard touchdown that tied the game for the moment.

Pablo Degollado’s extra point gave Los Fresnos its one-point cushion. In the drive, the Falcons ran 13 plays for 80 yards to chew up over three minutes. It was Rivera’s fourth touchdown catch of the season, but the junior said this was one he’ll never forget.

“It got us the game,” Rivera said. “(Kretz) could’ve thrown it to anybody else, but instead threw it to me.”

Falcons head coach Scott Ford said there were no adjustments made for the drive. Los Fresnos just attacked like they way it had been doing all night.

“I didn’t tell (the players) anything,” Ford said. “Whoever makes the big plays will win the game.”

With no timeouts left, San Benito had one last chance, but quarterback Raymond De Los Santos threw four-straight incompletions with the last coming to wide receiver Juan Lucio. The Falcon fans went nuts after they knew the win was in hand.

It didn’t look that promising when it looked like San Benito took control late in the game after it finally got Los Fresnos to go three and out with 7:58 left in the game. On fourth and 10 from their own 20, a bad snap over Degollado’s head drove the ball to the end zone. Degollado was then tackled for a safety to make it 38-37 in Los Fresnos’ favor.

After a nice return by Marco Gonzalez, the Greyhounds marched 34 yards in four plays, which resulted in a 21-yard score by running back Ernie Tamez (18 rushes, 69 yards, 3 touchdowns), which gave San Benito a 43-38 lead with 5:49 left.

A bit of controversy hit when the Greyhounds elected to kick the extra point instead of going for the two-point conversion that could’ve given them a seven-point lead instead of six. San Benito head coach Mario Pena knew what was in stake but said he was working with the defensive unit when the sequence of events unfolded.

“I was so preoccupied with the defense, I told the (coaches in the) press box we should’ve gone for two,” Pena said. “It was a mistake.”

Both teams put on a show specifically in the second half as each scored on their first three possessions. Trailing 17-7 at halftime, San Benito got the ball first and marched 51-yards in three plays with De Los Santos connecting with Gonzalez for a 45-yard strike to get within three at 17-14.

Los Fresnos went to Luis Campos to respond. After only getting three carries for two yards in the first half, the junior took over as his first three carries of the third quarter were for a combined 60 yards, which led to a 20-yard touchdown reception from Billy Waldorf for a 24-14 lead.

San Benito then answered with a 30-yard touchdown from De Los Santos to Greg Castillo, changing the margin again to three at 24-21.

Each team scored one more touchdown before the Falcons found themselves in a critical fourth and four from the San Benito 12-yard line.

Leading by only three, 31-28, Ford elected to go for it instead of kicking a field goal. On the play, Kretz found Jeremy Springer at the five and broke a tackle and scored with 10:00 left in the game. Ford actually wanted to kick the field goal but was convinced by offensive coordinator David Cantu to do otherwise.

“I told him jokingly, ‘The play better work,’” Ford said. “You’ve got to be willing to take chances.”

Kretz was sensational all night long as his poise led the Falcons to big play after big play. In his five-touchdown, 374–yard performance, Ford was asked if he had ever seen Kretz as spectacular as he was against the best defense in the district.

“No, but he has 24-straight starts,” Ford said.

mgonzalez@brownsvilleherald.com