RIVERSIDE — The Bulldogs are believing. Senior Draven Lopez passed for two touchdowns, had a key sack and blocked a kick as Hemet defeated Hillcrest, 35-27, in a Sunbelt League game on Friday night at Norte Vista High. “We already know there’s a target on our back and it’s only getting bigger,” Lopez said. “We know it’s there and now we have to believe we can defend it.” Lopez completed his first nine pass attempts and finished 14 of 19 for 205 yards for Hemet (7-0 overall, 2-0 Sunbelt), which is unbeaten after the first seven weeks of a season for the first time since 2004. “We haven’t done this in a while but it’s good,” Hemet coach Jeff Galloway said. “Like we were saying all this week, 7-0 sounds a lot better than 6-1.” Quarterback Matthew Ramos was injured in the loss as Hillcrest (5-2, 1-1) fell to 0-3 all-time against Hemet. “Obviously, Ramos has been our guy all year so losing him, you hate to see it,” Hillcrest coach Travis Carter said. Hillcrest fumbled away the opening possession and Hemet took advantage, with Lopez lofting it 32 yards for Christopher Washington to chase down in the end zone for a 7-0 lead. The Trojans got a 77-yard kickoff return from Nicholas Bernal to inside the 30, and Ramos ran the naked bootleg to perfection, connecting with Hudson Nguyen to tie the score. Hemet, averaging 35-plus points since Week 1, got a big play on first down and Neal capped a quick 65-yard drive with a 5-yard run to score the first of his two first-half touchdowns. Driving with less than 5 minutes remaining in the second quarter, Ramos dove forward into a pile for a short gain but did not get up. He was helped off the field, did not return and was taken to the hospital for evaluation. “It’s hard to say without looking at the film but it looks like the leg gave out or something,” Carter said. Related Articles High School Sports | IE Varsity’s Week 7 high school football scoreboard High School Sports | High school football: Top photos from Friday’s biggest games, Oct. 11 High School Sports | High school football: Live score updates, highlights from Friday night’s games High School Sports | Rancho Verde football team uses big third quarter to pull away from Vista del Lago High School Sports | Strong defense helps Centennial football team roll past shorthanded Vista Murrieta With backup Dylan Bailey under center, Hillcrest started the second half with 4-minute scoring drive to make it 21-13 on a 7-yard run by Robert Bustamante, but Hemet fired back with a 29-yard touchdown pass from Lopez to Kee-Esoul Pitchford to keep it a two-score game. The teams traded turnovers to begin the fourth quarter, but Bailey made it a one-score game with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Josiah Richards and the two-point conversion pass to Nguyen. On the ensuing onside kick, Hemet’s Matthew Gregory picked it up on the bounce and raced 50 yards to the end zone for a 35-21 lead. “I was thinking about it before the play, ‘If everything lines up I might take this one back,’” Gregory said. “Everything was perfect. Didn’t even have to break my stride.” Bailey led Hillcrest to one more late touchdown, but Lopez blocked the point-after attempt and Gregory again recovered the final onside kick to seal the win.