Ramirez Shines as Wolverines Handle Donna North 35–20

ALAMO — PSJA Memorial delivered its most complete performance of the season Friday, striking early through the air and closing the door on the ground to defeat Donna North 35–20 at PSJA Stadium on Homecoming night.

Senior quarterback Nolan Ramirez orchestrated a balanced Wolverines attack, throwing two first-quarter touchdown passes before adding a pair of rushing scores as Memorial (2–4, 2–2 District 15-5A DI) notched back-to-back wins.

Memorial wasted no time, opening with a quick strike from Ramirez to Andrew De La Rosa for the game’s first touchdown. On the next possession, Ramirez rolled left and found Vicente Lopez behind the defense to make it 14–0. After Donna North answered with a 52-yard scoring run by Prince Johnson, the Wolverines stretched the margin to 20–7 on a 43-yard touchdown run by Miguel Olvera, who showed awareness to stay off the turf and finish the play.

Donna North (1–6, 0–5) tightened the game with a grinding 17-play march capped by a quarterback sneak from Orlando Carrisalez, then pulled within one score again late in the half when Johnson flashed his track speed on a 70-yard touchdown to make it 28–20 at the break.

Memorial’s halftime response was decisive. With Olvera sidelined after a strong first half, junior back Gianni “Johnny” Morales took over the heavy lifting while Ramirez controlled the tempo. The Wolverines opened the third quarter with a methodical drive that Ramirez finished himself on a 5-yard keeper, his second rushing touchdown of the night, for a 35–20 cushion.

From there, Memorial’s defense did the rest. The front, led by Branndon Perez and Eusebio De Leon, knifed through on early downs to force long yardage, while linebackers Joaquin Palacios and Vicente Robles set the edge against Donna North’s misdirection. Jesus Solis and Anthony Ramirez closed windows in the secondary as the Chiefs searched for explosive answers. The night’s turning point came early in the fourth quarter when Perez pounced on a fumbled exchange inside the red zone, ending Donna North’s best chance to cut the deficit to one score.

Unofficially, Memorial finished with about 420 total yards—roughly 210 passing and 210 rushing—while scoring touchdowns on four of its first five possessions. Ramirez accounted for four scores (two passing, two rushing). De La Rosa and Lopez each caught a touchdown, and Morales salted away the final minutes with chain-moving runs behind Anthony Olarte, Aiden Coreno, Armando Cano and the interior line.

Johnson was electric for Donna North, piling up over 200 rushing yards with touchdowns of 52 and 70 yards, showcasing why he’s one of the Valley’s most dangerous open-field threats. But outside of his bursts and the first-half goal-line sneak, the Chiefs were limited to short gains, and a pair of second-half punts plus the red-zone fumble proved costly.

The win gives Memorial momentum heading into a marquee rivalry matchup next week against PSJA North at PSJA Stadium. Donna North returns to district play looking to regroup after showing plenty of fight and speed on the road.