Mitey Mites struggle against Vista Panthers

The Junior Mitey Mite Ramona Attack Dawgs hosted the Vista Panthers at BullDawgs Stadium for some hard hitting gridiron action on Saturday. From the opening series, it was clear that the battle would be a defensive struggle and the first team to score would move on to claim the game.

Vista won the game with a score of 6-0, another tight game in favor of Ramona’s opponent. The Dawgs demonstrated their unwavering determination, but the scoreboard did not reflect the tremendous effort expended on the field of play, said their coaches.

Vista took the field first on offense. The Ramona attack limited the Panthers to a handful of yards and a four and out series. Throughout the game, Ramona’s defensive stalwarts Peyton Silva, Lucas Carlson, Benton Welch, Matthew Wrenn and Matthew Populin led the onslaught with suffocating run coverage on the edges and between the tackles. Linebacker George Cohen and safety Zaak Della Gala cleaned up any action that seeped through the first line. Nose guards Anthony Pecoraro, Chance and Cole Mattson, and Hayden Carr played well creating stalemates on the inside, taking away any running lanes between the tackles.

The Panthers’ defense played an equally effective game. Despite stellar offensive line play from Josh Johnson, Brayden Nungesser, Anthony Hage and Silva, Vista’s run stopping unit consistently found ways into the Ramona backfield, stemming the Dawgs’ offensive attack.

The lone score of the game came on a Vista drive that started deep in Ramona territory. Vista was able to log their first of only two first downs of the game en route to a 6-yard sprint to the end zone early in the second quarter.

Although Ramona mirrored the Panthers’ offensive performance, manufacturing only a couple first downs on nifty runs by Della Gala and Cohen, the Dawgs were unable to break one for a score.