Members of the Dolores High School football team, will remember this year's homecoming game for a long time.

Playing against John Mall on Oct. 3, the Bears dominated early and hung on late, winning 28-19 to improve to 3-3 on the season.

While several factors contributed to the Bears win, none were as important as an effective Dolores running game, which amassed 414 yards and four touchdowns.

Mikeal Ford led Bears rushers with 236 yards and two touchdowns, while Branden Donaldson ran for 136 yards and one touchdown for the Bears.

Thanks to its rushing attack, Dolores jumped out to a 7-0 lead by the end of the first quarter and extended that lead to 14-7 lead by halftime.

After two third-quarter touchdowns put Dolores ahead 28-7 heading into the fourth, John Mall fought back late, scoring two touchdowns to cut the Dolores lead to 28-19.

"(John Mall) used a little ingenuity," said Bears head coach Chris Trusler. "They threw a halfback pass for a (73 yard) score. There were also some miscues by our guys and some penalties that put John Mall in some good situations."

On the defensive side of the ball, linebacker Kellen Gatzke led Dolores with 23 total tackles. Thanks in part to his performance, Gatzke currently leads Colorado's 1A Class in total tackles.

"Last year, we only won one game," said Gatzke. "It's good to have a better team this year."

Also playing a key role on defense was senior Guy Wallace, who had nine tackles and one interception.

"It was very special," said Wallace of the win. "If there was any game that I could have picked to win, it would have been homecoming."

Likely sharing Wallace's thoughts were many members of a large crowd that cheered widely from start to finish.

"The crowd up in the stands was really into the game and they were making a lot of noise," said Trusler. "There were a lot of smiles up there."

All in all, the win was significant for the Bears in that it represented the team's first against a varsity opponent this season.

"Before the game, I told the guys, 'we've got to maintain our blocks, be disciplined and play better football than John Mall,'" said Trusler. "The kids stood up to that and we got the win."

Intent on maintaining their momentum, Dolores will play on the road against Center on Oct. 9. Center will enter the game with a 2-4 record.

"(Center) runs a spread offense and we think we're going to be able to compete with them pretty good," said Trusler.