The 2022 South Tama football season came to a disappointing end with a 21-13 loss to Hampton-Dumont-CAL on senior night Friday, but the Trojans hung tough and nearly upset the playoff-bound Bulldogs.

South Tama finished the season 1-8 overall and lost their last seven contests after a 53-0 victory over Saydel in week two. The Trojans and Bulldogs (6-3) were tied at seven after a quarter, and H-D/CAL led 14-13 at halftime. The score remained the same at the end of the third, but a late Bulldog touchdown added some insurance for the eventual victors.

After moving to running back for a chunk of the season, junior Gavin Bridgewater retook the reins at quarterback for the Trojans and finished 3-of-7 passing with 71 yards and a 38-yard touchdown pass to senior Nolan Upah. Additionally, Bridgewater carried 27 times for 90 yards and a three-yard score. Still, STC finished with just 192 yards of total offense.

Defensively, senior Rudy Papakee led the way with eight total tackles including one for loss, and Bridgewater (7.5) and junior Kyan McBride weren’t far behind him. Both Papakee and fellow senior Jose Demetrio-Ortega recovered a fumble apiece, and Upah nabbed an interception in addition to his touchdown catch on offense.

Brody Walton was the top individual rusher for the Bulldogs with nine carries for 92 yards and two scores. As a team, H-D/CAL racked up 241 yards on the ground and nearly eclipsed 400 yards of total offense as quarterback Gavin Meader completed 15 of his 21 pass attempts for 153 yards and an interception.

Besides Papakee, Upah and Demetrio-Ortega, 11 other seniors played their final game in a Trojan uniform on Friday night: Pablo Montez, Hayden Morris, Ethan Cruikshank, Damion Castellanos, Eddie Garcia, Haydin Branan, Darrell Hill, Damien Benner, Araya Roberts, Nathaniel Palmarez and Diego Victor.