Cheyenne romps over Sierra Vista in opener

Marcus Sullivan touched the football only 10 times in Cheyenne’s season opener Thursday.

That was all he needed to score five touchdowns and a 2-point conversion.

The Desert Shields senior rushed for 72 yards and three touchdowns and caught two passes — both for touchdowns — for 123 yards, including a 90-yard scoring strike, as Cheyenne throttled Sierra Vista 50-6 at Cheyenne.

“I didn’t imagine anything like this,” Sullivan said. “I just tried to find seams and get open.”

Sullivan scored on runs of 39, 6 and 4 yards. He slipped behind the Mountain Lions’ defense on two pass plays, hauling in a 33-yard pass from Chris Spencer and a 90-yard catch and run from Kaeo Helekahi, both in the first half.

Cheyenne, which returned 10 starters on each side of the ball, led 30-0 at the half and cruised to the win.

It wasn’t all Sullivan, though.

Cheyenne’s defense, led by senior linebacker Damien Proby, limited Sierra Vista to 89 total yards, 50 of which came on the Mountain Lions’ fourth-quarter scoring drive.

“The guys played pretty well on defense,” Cheyenne coach Charles Anthony said. “Proby is a great player. He’s a great kid, too.”

The Desert Shields’ special teams also got into the act.

Jordan Butler returned a punt 63 yards along the left sideline for a second-quarter touchdown.

Cheyenne led only 8-0 near the midway mark of the second quarter but scored three touchdowns in the final 6:09 of the half. The Desert Shields ran only six offensive plays in the second quarter.

Terrence Brison led a strong ground game, carrying 15 times for 101 yards and a touchdown. Donielle Thompson had seven carries for 98 yards.

Cheyenne racked up 459 total yards on only 45 plays, including 42 rushes for 336 yards.

“We struggled with some things, but we had kids step up and do some things,” Anthony said. “They’ve worked hard all summer. They’re deserving of success.”

Akil Sharp had the Mountain Lions’ touchdown, a 1-yard run with 4:54 to play.

“We feel like we can win the league this year if we keep working hard,” Sullivan said. “It was real important to get off to a good start.”