When a team is committed and fully buys in, losing a game is supposed to hurt. It means everyone associated with the program cares.

That was certainly the case Friday night as the Pioneer High School varsity football team lost a heartbreaker on their senior night to the class of the Monticello Empire League, Rodriguez, by the tight score of 7-12.

After taking the lead early in the first quarter, the Patriots (5-3, 2-3 MEL) played lights out on defense and did just enough on offense to win the league showdown until about two minutes left in the fourth quarter. That’s when the mighty Rodriguez (9-0, 6-0 MEL) snatched the lead and came away with the victory, just as they have in every game this season.

“I can’t even say how proud enough I am of the team,” Patriots coach Jason Whitfield said. “That was the first thing I thought when I went to talk to the boys after the game. We can hang our heads up high and be proud knowing that we came in here and fought against a damn good undefeated team over there. We had it for most of the game, but sometimes it doesn’t bounce your way.

Rodriguez came into the matchup after wrecking teams all season, running an undefeated record in the league thanks to a 45-21 win over Vanden, a 22-16 win over Vacaville, a 15-13 win over Sacramento, a 26-7 win over River City and a 30-10 win over Wood last week.

Other massive nonleague wins include a 53-0 victory over Fremont, a 34-0 win over Fairfield, a 24-12 win over Armijo, and a 65-0 win over Bethel.

Despite missing their star quarterback against the Patriots, Rodriguez still made clutch offensive plays at the end of the first quarter and very late in the game in the fourth quarter to get on the bus back home with a spotless regular season record.

“I want us to understand the team we just played is undefeated for a reason,” Whitfield said. “That is an excellent team, and we competed. Moving forward, we have to remember that we can compete with the best of them.”

Before the game, the Patriots celebrated all 19 seniors on the squad, including Braulio Acevedo, Landon Dahler, Mitchell Cotton, Abimael Arroyo, Martin Bartz, Prince Flores, Tiburcio Silva, Emilio Casas, Liam Garcia, Nicco Hargrove, Jayden Tamayo, Daniel Galvan, Daniel Ramirez, Angel Lopez Roa, Diego Preciado, Luciano Vazquez Jr., Niko Lopez, Alex Macias, and Jason Orosco.

Pioneer enjoyed a dream start against the league’s first-placed team, forcing an early punt and then converting their first drive into points as big tight end Alex Macias scored his third touchdown of the season on a pass from Braulio Acevedo to go up 7-0.

With about 12 seconds left in the first quarter, Rodriguez punched in a hard-nosed run up the middle for a touchdown. However, they’d miss the two-point conversion and remain down 7-6.

After that score, both teams scored no more points in the first half still but managed to move the ball effectively.

On the next drive, Pioneer was aided by a litany of flags, a fantastic Devion Corley catch, and a nice scramble from backup quarterback Jordan Constancio to set them up in the red zone.

On second down, however, Acevedo rolled out to his right and threw an interception, ending the drive and giving Rodriguez a huge momentum boost. The boost didn’t last too long as Rodriguez drove all the way down inside the 10-yard line but would then throw an interception of their own right back to the Patriots.

“The defense has been balling all year,” Whitfield said. “I can’t say enough about them. Tonight was the best I have seen them all season. It hurts to lose that way, but I’m looking at the positive side, and I couldn’t be more proud of the way we fought throughout the whole game.”

After the halftime break, Pioneer mounted another crisp and ruthless drive filled with runs right up the middle. They controlled the clock and held on tight to the slim lead.

As the fourth quarter began, Pioneer converted a short run on fourth down to keep the clock and drive moving. Then, on 3rd and 12, when things looked bleak, Patriots running back Julian Barajas took the ball and ran it all the way to the four-yard line, deep in Rodriguez’s territory.

“The way the offense played tonight is a testament to the playcalling, the big boys up front and our running backs running the ball hard,” Whitfield said. “You can tell everyone really wanted it tonight, and we almost had it. We put in a good game plan tonight. The boys bought in and fought, and that’s all you can ask for, win or lose.”

After a few plays, including two ruthless runs up the middle from Corely, the Patriots turned the ball over on downs, giving the visitors just enough time to mount a final drive.

After a long drive aided by a fantastic 40-plus yard catch from wide receiver Jermaine Missouri, Rodriguez’s backup quarterback, Mancianno Syess, took a direct snap into the end zone, giving them a 12-7 lead and eventually the game.

The Patriots’ next challenge will be to get back to .500 in the MEL when they travel to Vanden for the season finale next Friday at 7 p.m.

“We want to get to the playoffs,” Whitfield said. “When you get there, it’s just survive and advance. If we can battle with Rodriguez, we can battle with anyone else. I want to see the same fight we saw tonight next week against Vanden.”