Pueblo defeated Sahuarita 14-13 in stunning fashion Friday night at Saturnino “Curly” Santa Cruz Stadium, erasing a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit in front of its home fans. The Warriors are now just one win away from clinching the 4A Gila title.
Pueblo (6-3 overall, 4-0 4A Gila) hosts Empire (3-6, 3-1 4A Gila) next Friday in the regular-season finale. If Empire wins and Sahuarita (4-5, 3-1 4A Gila) loses at home to Cholla, the Ravens would win the region title outright. If Empire and Sahuarita win, a three-way tie would exist and the ratings would be the tie-breaker. If Pueblo beats Empire, it guarantees the Warriors the 4A Gila title.
Sahuarita’s two-possession lead held until around the midway point in the fourth quarter, when a 35-yard touchdown pass from Roman Otero to Aron German cut Sahuarita’s lead to 13-7 with about seven minutes remaining, and a a 7-yard touchdown run by Jeremiah Sandoval and the extra point that followed gave Pueblo a 14-13 lead with about five minutes to go.
Pueblo forced a turnover on downs near midfield in the final minutes to all but seal the win for the Warriors.
“It feels great. The kids battled,” Pueblo head coach Sly Lewis said. “At one point, I told them, ‘Hey, we’ve just got to stick together. Things are there. We just got to figure things out,’ and they did. The switch went on. They’re a resilient bunch. They worked their tails off and finally finished it. That’s what a region champion does. You find a way. I’m just extremely proud of these guys and grateful for them and my staff.”
Lewis praised Sahuarita and head coach Jake Allen, highlighting Pueblo’s ability to bounce back from costly penalties throughout the game to mount a fourth-quarter comeback.
“Hats off to Sahuarita. They’re a very good football team. Coach Allen does a great job down there. They came to play, and we just had to make sure that we took care of what we were doing,” he said . “We shot ourselves in the foot a couple times with penalties, but we overcame that, and then we’re able to put some drives together and score one more point.”
Following the game, Lewis gathered his team on the track to personally thank the fans and families for their support. When asked about what the region title would mean, the 1992 Pueblo graduate pointed to the stadium sign bearing the name of his former high school coach, Saturnino “Curly” Santa Cruz. Lewis said winning the region would be a testament to Santa Cruz, the other coaches he’s learned from over the years and the dedication of his players.
Lewis was an assistant coach at Sabino High School for 20 years before taking the head coaching job at Pueblo last season. The Warriors went 2-8 and were winless in region play.
“It means the world to come back and be able to be home and give these kids an opportunity to be successful. Nobody gives them credit. I’m telling you, I’ve had so many phone calls, emails and texts about it’s going to be a tough job. You know what? Obviously, I like a tough job, because these dudes really, really buckled down. They get it done in the classroom, they get it done in the weight room and now it shows here on the field.”
Pueblo head coach Sly Lewis reflects on the Warriors being 4A Gila champions and the fourth quarter comeback against Sahuarita. @AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/8jqWDDo45P
— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 25, 2025
Sly Lewis credits Saturnino “Curly” Santa Cruz, whom he played for at Pueblo before graduating in 1992, when reflecting on what the region title means to him. @AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/W46QrUic9D
— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 25, 2025
Otero, who gave a halftime talk when the game was scoreless, was most pleased with Pueblo’s ability to fight through adversity when things weren’t coming easily.
“I love how everybody stuck through thick and thin in the first half when we weren’t doing that good. But during halftime, I talked to them. They all bought in. They all understood where I was coming from. We just took all the little puzzles that we were figuring out throughout the game and put it all together,” he said
Pueblo quarterback Roman Otero’s 35-yard touchdown pass to Aron German began the Warriors fourth quarter comeback against Sahuarita. @AllSportsTucson pic.twitter.com/63VQxz9UIx
— Kevin Murphy (@KevinMurfee) October 25, 2025
The game’s first score came on the opening kickoff of the second half when Trent Hubble returned it 84 yards for a touchdown to put Sahuarita up 7-0.
Hubble added a 40-yard touchdown run to extend Sahuarita’s lead with just under five minutes left in the third quarter. He received his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the play and was subsequently ejected. Pueblo then blocked the extra point, making it a 13-0 game.
Otero said that after the touchdown and blocked extra point, the team returned to the form they showed during their five-game win streak heading into Friday.
“We were just talking to each other and communicating more than we were,” he said.
In the first half, Pueblo and Sahuarita each advanced deep into their opponents’ territory once, but came away empty.
Otero threw a 38-yard pass to Fernando Garcia to Sahuarita’s 17-yard line with just under two minutes in the first quarter. A delay of game and a false start would later back Pueblo up to the 19-yard line, and Sahuarita caused a turnover on downs.
A 41-yard pass from Sahuarita quarterback Dane Hartnett to Javin Jones advanced the Mustangs to the 25-yard line early in the second quarter, but Sahuarita wasn’t able to capitalize, missing a 43-yard field goal attempt a few plays later.
FOLLOW @KEVINMURFEE ON TWITTER! ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com writer Kevin Murphy was born and raised in Tucson, and has followed Arizona Wildcats athletics since childhood. Murphy is a journalist product manager with the Green Valley News the Sahuarita Sun. He has a bachelor’s degree from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at ASU.
Recommended for you
