On Friday, October 29, the CMHS Football Team went head to head with city rivals Estancia High School, battling for the championship of Battle of the Bell.
In the first half, Mesa made their presence known with the first touchdown of the game, by junior Garrett Richards, followed by Richards scoring on a two-yard keeper to set the score early at 7-0.
The Eagles made a comeback in the second half, tying the score 7-7. It all came down to the last half of the second half, in which Estancia had possession of the ball.
Completely against the traffic of the game, Richards threw a 20-foot ball to junior Riley Weinstein, allowing the Mustangs to get yet another touchdown by senior Kobe Lemari, setting the score to 14-7 with just 1 minute left in the game.
However, the Eagles weren’t done just yet.
Estancia managed to get the ball back on the 2 yard line with 16 seconds left in the game. What looked to be a touchdown had everyone in the stands holding their breath.
It was only met with relief as it was announced the Estancia quarterback had come short of the end zone, which meant the Mustangs had taken the win.
The stands erupted with cheers from students and parents alike.
The Mustangs had done the unthinkable.
Students swarmed the field, cheering on the athletes as they took turns ringing the bell they got to bring home after 8 years of being unable to do so.
After their win, the Mesa team enjoyed a dinner at Newport Rib Co. and received city champions medals.
The Mustangs placed 3rd in league and set Estancia back into 5th place, although both teams made it into the first round of CIF.
