The Durango Young America Football League squads will head into the final week of the regular season with heads held high, as the Demons went 3-1 last week.
At the fifth-grade level, the Demons defeated Aztec 32-16 behind Brady Hoerl’s one rushing and one passing touchdown. Cooper Mitchell got the Demons on the board with an 11-yard touchdown run. Shortly after, Hoerl found the end zone on a sweep play in which he ran 13 yards and topped it off with a diving score. Hoerl threw a 14-yard strike to Nathan Beal for the Demons’ final offensive touchdown. On defense, Max Schtakleff returned an interception for a score, while Tatum Rose recovered a fumble in the end zone. Rose finished with 1½ sacks. Durango will have a bye heading into the playoffs.
The sixth-grade side defeated Bloomfield 24-12, as Cole Pontine led the way with three touchdowns. Malakai Baier had 35 yards receiving and added a touchdown. Linkin Griego threw for 218 yards. On defense, the Demons forced two interceptions, including one from Pontine and another from Ryan Dugan. Pontine finished with five tackles, and Cully Feeney led the team with six. Durango will host the Farmington Scorpions at 1 p.m. Saturday.
The fourth-grade team defeated Kirtland 6-0 in a narrow win last Saturday, and the Demons improved to 4-3 on the season. The game’s only score was a 4-yard bootleg pass from Grady Feeney to Tyler Hoerl. The Demons almost found the end zone again, but a touchdown was called back because of holding. On defense, the Demons recorded their fourth shutout of the season. Kirtland had a chance to tie the game in its final drive, but Peyton Pierre-Louis made two key tackles when they were deep in Demon territory. The Demons will host the Aztec Apes in their final regular season game at 9 a.m. Saturday at Miller Middle School.
The second-graders were the only team to lose last week, after a narrow 6-0 loss to Farmington. Caleb Duran and Isaiah Contreras each recorded fumble recoveries for the Demons. The Demons will finish out their regular season at home at 3 p.m. Saturday.
Durango’s third-grade team had a bye last week.
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