Heartbreaker: Fourth quarter rally ends Chargers season in area round

SAN ANTONIO — With 3:53 left in the third quarter, the Brownsville Veterans Chargers seemed headed to their third straight regional semifinal appearance.

A 42-yard touchdown run by Calvin Trevillion had just given the Chargers a 35-17 lead during the period, the third straight score by Brownsville Veterans.

New Braunfels Canyon wiped away the Chargers third round hopes with three straight touchdowns of their own en route to a 38-35 comeback win over Brownsville Veterans on Friday at Heroes Stadium in San Antonio.

“I understand that the sting is real,” Brownsville Veterans head coach JC Ramirez said. “Everybody works extremely hard to try and get to the next round. Our season is now over but our story is not over. I hope me and my coaches have an opportunity to continue to being a part of each of these individuals stories for the rest of their lives.”

Brownsville Veterans looked like the better team early on, forcing a three-and-out on Canyon’s opening drive before marching down the field to take a 7-0 lead on a two-yard touchdown run by senior Storm Montoya.

The Chargers followed it up with a fourth down stop of the Cougars at the one on the next drive, but the turnover turned to catastrophe on the next play, with Canyon recovering a fumbled snap in the end zone for their first points of the game.

The two teams traded touchdowns during the second to make it a 14-14 game late in the second, but a 26-yard field goal by Canyon’s Carlos Henriquez gave the Cougars a three-point advantage at the break.

The Chargers flipped a switch to start the second half, reeling off three straight touchdowns during the quarter to take a 35-17 lead late in the third quarter.

Montoya scored the first two touchdowns for the Chargers during the period, with Calvin Trevillion capping the 21-0 run with a 42-yard touchdown run to give Brownsville Veterans a 18-point lead.

Canyon responded with a 21-0 run of their own, highlighted by a pair of touchdown runs by Jackson Reagan, including a two-yard score with 3:03 left to give New Braunfels Canyon the lead.

The Chargers got one last shot at taking the lead after Reagan’s touchdown, but the offense couldn’t get it done, with Roman McFall picking off Montoya on fourth down to secure the Cougars win.

“These kids, they’re special,” Ramirez said. “Chargers football is not for everybody. … Obviously we want to win every ball game. This year looking back, we won more games than we lost. Tonight, we were three points short from getting to the next level. It is going to be painful experience to watch on film, but there is definitely a lot to learn there.”

Montoya finished the game with 17 carries for 157 yards and three touchdowns, also adding 34 passing yards and one passing touchdown. Alvin Trevillion added 122 yards on 15 carries.

Regan led the Cougars with 34 carries for 172 yards and two touchdowns, while quarterback Reece Deitrick went 18-of-30 for 225 yards and one touchdown.

The Cougars advance to the Region IV-6A DII semifinals next week where they’ll take on the winner between San Antonio Harlan and Dripping Springs.

The Chargers finish with an 8-4 overall mark, including a 3-1 finish in 32-6A play for second place.