RANGELY | This past Saturday, the Rangely Panthers traveled to Vail to take on the Vail Christian Saints in what turned out to be a challenging game. Despite a second-half surge, the Panthers were unable to overcome a slow start and ultimately fell to the Saints with a final score of 30-52.
Coach LeBleu acknowledged the tough first half, noting, “The Panthers started the first half extremely slow. We had a hard time getting anything going on offense, and we couldn’t get any stops on defense.” Vail Christian capitalized on these struggles, building a commanding 38-0 lead by halftime.
The Panthers came out with renewed energy in the second half. Quarterback Bradley Lambros (So) led a strong offensive rally, completing nine of 14 passes for 203 yards, including three touchdowns to standout receiver Tristan Scott (Sr), who hauled in 5 catches for 172 yards, averaging 34.4 yards per catch. The Panthers scored 22 unanswered points, closing the gap to 38-22.
Coach LeBleu praised the team’s resilience: “In the second half, the Panthers got the fire lit and started to make a comeback. The offense started to roll, putting 22 unanswered points on the board.” Jordan Irwin (Sr) also contributed 31 receiving yards and led the rushing attack with 39 yards on 4 carries, showing his versatility on both sides of the ball.
Defensively, the Panthers were led by Izaiah Moody (Sr), who recorded 17 tackles, and Jordan Irwin, who had a stellar defensive performance with 20 tackles. Gage Fielder (Sr) and Tristan Scott also made significant contributions with 15 and 11 tackles, respectively. Despite their efforts, the defense couldn’t get the crucial stops needed in the fourth quarter to complete the comeback.
“At the start of the fourth quarter, we were unable to get the necessary stops to close the gap,” LeBleu said. “All in all, it’s a game we would love to have back, but we will fix the issues and get better during the week.”
Special teams saw solid contributions as well, with Marcos Quintana (Sr) punting twice for an average of 42 yards and kicking off four times with an average of 35.8 yards.
While the final score was disappointing, the Panthers’ second-half rally showed their potential, and they will look to address the early-game issues and come back stronger in their next outing.
