The Wildcats experienced their second loss in a row when losing to Granada 41-21 on Oct. 15.

Prior to the game, Dougherty won against Deer Valley by a score of 31-16, dominated Vallejo 48-6 and lost to Foothill, respectively.

In their game against Granada, the Wildcats received the football at kickoff, starting the game on offense. Dougherty attempted to establish a run game, as Matt Gonsalves rushed for 12 yards and Aryan Gaur rushed for 10 yards. A helmet-to-helmet contact penalty against Granada gave the Wildcats an extra 15 yards, putting the Wildcats in a decent field goal position. After stopping the Wildcats on third and fourth, Granada blocked a Wildcat field goal attempt and returned it for a touchdown. The point-after-attempt was successful, giving Granada the early 7-0 lead. 

When the Wildcats went back on offense, they struck immediately, Aditya Ved completing a pass to Theodore Leong for a gain of about 50 yards. After the Wildcats entered the red zone, Gonsalves rushed for a  touchdown. With the PAT good, the Wildcats tied the game at 7 apiece. 

As Granada headed into their first full drive on offense, they settled with running the football immediately as Eric Hall started the drive with an 18-yard rush. They proceeded to advance with a 31 yard rush by Leif Jenson. Nathan Lloyd then scored a touchdown for Granada. The PAT was successful and Granada regained their lead at 14-7. 

The Wildcats went into their third offensive possession but were not able to convert on third down. On fourth down, the Wildcats attempted to catch Granada’s defense off guard with a fake punt, but Granada didn’t fall for it, putting Granada in good field position. 

The next few plays put Granada immediately in the red zone. In one of the plays, Hall burst out for a 20-yard rush. Granada capped off the short drive with a QB sneak play, Brandon Shah tucking it in for the touchdown. With the PAT good, Granada’s lead extended to 21-7. 

The Wildcat offense went back on the field seeking to turn the game around after their previous quiet drive. It stayed that way however, as Granada’s defense shut the Wildcats down by forcing another three and out.

Heading into the second quarter, Granada continued to run the ball against the Wildcats as Hall started off the drive with a 17-yard rush. 

After an 11-play drive, Granada ran a quarterback sneak on fourth and goal, Shah tucking it in again for another Granada touchdown. Granada was then up 28-7 after a successful conversion attempt.

Dougherty’s next drive started off well, as Gonsalves ran for six yards and Gaur ran for 10. Even so, the Wildcats lost their rhythm when they were penalized with a false start. The penalty ultimately prevented the Wildcats from continuing their drive, forcing them to punt.

As Granada’s offense headed into the final stretch of the first half, they started the drive with a five-yard rush and 20-yard touchdown by Hall. The PAT was unsuccessful, but Granada had a comfortable lead heading into halftime at 34-7.

With the second half underway, Granada started first with their offense heading onto the field again. They were able to put up a long, 15-play drive. Although Granada received an early holding penalty, they were able to successfully run the football, consistently getting five yards  or more per carry. They finished the drive with a touchdown catch thrown by Shah. The PAT was good, extending the Granada lead even further to 41-7. 

The Wildcats were finally able to find a rhythm on offense in garbage time, having been deprived of a first down ever since their touchdown drive in the first quarter. 

They found life in the run game, as Austin Spears put up a rush of 12 yards, along with a 26-yard rush by Gonsalves. They were able to finish off with a touchdown rush by Spears. 

With the PAT good, the Wildcats slowly cut away the Granada lead. The Wildcat defense was also able to keep up some momentum, as they forced a three and out on Granada, giving the ball back to the Wildcats. 

The Wildcat offense put up a quick drive with a 62-yard touchdown run made by Gonsalves. With the PAT successful, Granada’s lead dropped down to 41-21. 

With Granada going back on offense, they were able to start off with Hall getting a pair of 10 yard rushes. The ensuing drive was long as Granada dominated playing time. With a delay of game penalty on Granada on a fourth and one, as they tried to catch the Wildcats offside, Granada was forced to punt the ball with little time remaining in the fourth quarter. 

The Wildcats lost with a final score of 41-21, losing their second straight game and putting up an overall record of 5-2.