It’s a Friday night under the lights, the stands are packed shoulder to shoulder, filled with crimson and orange, the players on the field huddle with their teams, sweat already dripping from their hair, preparing to fight under the stars. 

Friday September 2nd 2022, the Paso Robles Bearcats faced off against the Atascadero Greyhounds at Atascadero. After a long game of both teams pushing back and forth, the Bearcats won with a final score of 35-21.

Early in the first quarter, Senior running back Leo Kemp took charge and ran for the first touchdown of the game, putting the Bearcats ahead 7-0. With the Greyhounds looking to attack in their drive, Junior defensive back Hayden McKanna picked off a Greyhound pass and ran it back for a touchdown putting the Bearcats up 14-0 at the end of the first quarter. 

The greyhounds started off the second quarter with a touchdown, then scored another touchdown halfway through the second quarter, to tie up the game 14-14. But Paso retaliates with a touchdown in their next drive to take the lead 21-14. Atascadero then scores again and the game is tied at halftime 21-21.

As a pound the hounds tradition, Paso and Atascadero’s cheer teams performed a dance together for the halftime show. Paso’s advanced dance team also traveled to perform for the Bearcat fans on the sidelines.  

In the third quarter Paso scored again adding to the lead making it 28-21 at the end of the third quarter. The Bearcats also extended their lead with another touchdown, going on to shutout the hounds in the second half winning 35-21. 

The Bearcats had a total of 335 yards, 91 tackles, and 3 interceptions in the win Friday night. 

“There is a lot of history in this rivalry that I’ve heard about for years and beating Atascadero always means a little more.”