With 3:42 seconds left in the first quarter and the score tied at zero, Branden Donaldson took flight.
After dropping into coverage from his linebacker position, the Dolores senior moved toward his left, mirroring Coal Ridge quarterback Jackson Sargent as he rolled out.
Sargent released a pass intended for his receiver breaking toward the sideline, but Donaldson had already jumped the route and begun his leap.
Diving in front of the Titans receiver, Donaldson intercepted the pass, pinning it to his chest as he careened into the white paint marking the 10-yard line on the field.
He immediately popped up with the ball, showing that he had completed the catch.
But then he grabbed at his arm with his shoulder slouching.
Donaldson had picked off the Coal Ridge pass, but he had broken his collarbone in the process, likely ending his season.
"When you lose one of your key players, it affects the whole team," said head coach Chris Trusler.
"A kid like Donaldson is not replaceable," he said. "I mean, he was our punt returner, kick returner, long snapper, running back and linebacker."
Donaldson made his mark defensively with the early interception, and the Bears defense hung tough without him.
Sophomore Talon Zwicker prowled the field, racking up 7½ tackles, which included three for losses, and senior Jalen Balderrama and junior Tristen Medina each pulled down interceptions.
Offensively, before exiting the game, Donaldson had four carries for 22 yards. Trusler tried out multiple replacements in search of a running back to fill in for the 2014 Southern Peaks League All-Conference selection.
Senior Josh McCoy rushed for 19 yards, sophomore Austin Hackney ran for 16 and Zwicker and freshman Skieler Grooms also got carries, with the team rushing for 101 yards.
The Bears had players step up, and while they missed Donaldson's presence both offensively and defensively, their Achilles heel was their special teams.
They gave up a touchdown on a punt return in the first quarter, and had three punts blocked, giving the Coal Ridge offense a short field.
The first blocked punt led to an 11-yard touchdown pass for the Titans, and they turned the second and third into drives that culminated in rushing scores.
The Bears' mistakes led to points, but they only trailed 19-0 at half.
"The kids fought the whole game," Trusler said. "They didn't give up. At halftime we were down 19 to nothing, but the game was still in reach. Coal Ridge just came and executed better than we did."
Dolores hung around, behind 19-0 entering the fourth quarter, but the Titans piled on three scores in the final frame to go ahead 38-0.
The Bears' found the end zone on their final drive, after Balderrama hooked up with Zwicker for a 25-yard gain and an 11-yard carry by Grooms set them up in the red zone.
Then, Balderrama found junior Tristen Medina on a 24-yard touchdown pass with less than ten seconds remaining.
Medina finished with four catches, 49 yards and the Bears' lone score, and Balderrama passed for 92 yards, one touchdown and an interception.
"This week we've just got to fix some mental errors," Trusler said after the 38-6 loss. "Make sure the offensive linemen know who they've got to block in different scenarios, things like that."
The Bears will travel to Monument Valley, Utah on Friday for their first matchup against the Monument Valley Cougars (0-1) at 7:00 p.m.
"This will be our first time against them," Trusler said. "We really don't know very much about them. I think they're about equal in size, as far as players, that we are. But I think we're going to do well against them."
