They said they couldn’t do it twice, but the Raiders proved the critics wrong as they rolled to a 35-10 win over Hays in the second round of playoffs Friday, Nov. 22. The Raiders beat Hays 29-20 in September  in their third game of the season.

“I felt like we played as a team, more as a team than in the past,” quarterback and wide receiver Wesley Geisler said. “We definitely played to our expectations.”

In the cold and freezing rain, the team won the rematch on the ground, rushing for 332 yards before a sparse crowd. The Raiders put up five touchdowns in the win, including two by quarterback Billy Ray McCrary who had 143 rushing yards.

“As a defensive player, it’s the best thing that could happen when opposing a passing team,” senior Kameron Wideman said. “It opens up opportunities for us to make plays because it adds another obstacle to the offense, taking always the offensive scheme.”

McCrary also threw for 44 yards, including a 20-yard touchdown to Geisler. Senior Andre Alger accounted for the other two touchdowns, a 9-yard run in the first quarter and a 91-yard run to open the second half. Alger was the leading rusher for the Raiders, racking up 176 yards on 14 carries.

Hays had no answers for a stingy Raider defense that held the Rebels to a field goal in the first half and a lone touchdown late in the fourth quarter. The Rebels struggled in the cold, raining conditions, rushing for only 19 yards on 28 attempts. Hays’ quarterback Jeffrey Jordan completed 17 of 35 passes for 148 yards, but also threw three interceptions. The defense also sacked Jordan three times for a total loss of 21 yards.

The Rebels finish their season 9-3, two of their losses to the Raiders. The varsity team improves to 9-3 and moves on to the third round of playoffs for the second year in a row.

“It felt good to prove everyone wrong, because we’re always underestimated and made the underdog,” Geisler said. “We’ve gotten used to being picked to lose and that only increases the desire to win and show them they were wrong.”

The Raiders take on San Antonio Harlandale, who squeaked past Gregory-Portland 37-35 in the first round and survived a late comeback by Rio Grande City 33-28 in the second round. The Raiders will play the 10-2 Indians at Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos, Friday, Nov. 29 at 8 p.m.