FOOTBALL: Big stop seals Green Valley’s win

On a night the Green Valley offense was in control, it was the Gators defense that needed to make a play to preserve a victory.

Several Green Valley defenders combined to stop C.J. Jones 2 yards short of a first down on a fourth-down play near midfield to seal a 45-37 home victory over Canyon Springs on Friday night.

“Those guys have been playing well,” Green Valley coach Brian Castro said of his defense. “I know the score doesn’t always indicate that, but those guys are doing what they need to do, and we’re very fortunate to have them when we need a big play.”

Albert Lake provided plenty of those for the offense as well. He ran for 203 yards and three touchdowns for the Gators but had to watch as the defense tried to hold on after he fumbled while Green Valley attempted to run out the clock.

“That was my first high school fumble, and it did not feel good at all,” the senior said. “But I have faith in our defense, and we shut them down at the end.”

It looked like Lake’s 35-yard TD run with 3:04 left to put Green Valley (6-1) ahead 45-31 might end the drama, but Canyon Springs (4-3) scored quickly and had one last chance after the turnover.

Lake’s strong game before the fumble put the Gators in position to win.

“My line did great as usual,” he said. “We had a good push, especially toward the end, and I just ran hard.”

Green Valley started to take control early in the second half. Canyon Springs had tied the game in the closing seconds of the second quarter and had the ball first after halftime.

Jacob Rivero came up with an interception on the Pioneers’ second play, however, and the Gators capitalized with a 17-yard touchdown on a reverse pass from receiver Austin Warhop to Dakota Prussia.

The Pioneers went three-and-out, and a 4-yard touchdown run by Lake to pushed the Green Valley lead to 31-17.

“That was big for us,” Castro said of the interception. “We knew we were going to get their best shot coming out of the half with whatever adjustments they were going to make. We talked to our guys about that at halftime that they were going to have to make plays, and they did.”

Each time Canyon Springs threatened to get back in it, the Gators had an answer.

Canyon Springs cut the deficit to 31-24 with a 1-yard touchdown run by Jaleel Rogers on the first play of the fourth quarter, but Lake responded with a 2-yard scoring run less than two minutes later. The touchdown was set up by a 59-yard catch-and-run by Prussia to the 2-yard line.

The Pioneers again got within a touchdown with 8:18 to play and then got the ball back. The Green Valley defense held, and the Gators got the ball at Canyon Springs’ 35-yard line after a short punt, setting up Lake’s final score.

Casey caught nine passes for 124 yards and two touchdowns.

Brenan Adams added 102 yards and a touchdown on the ground for Green Valley. Lopez threw for 137 yards and ran for a score.

Bishop Gorman 70, Legacy 13 — At Bishop Gorman, sophomore quarterback Tate Martell threw for 178 yards and four touchdowns in just over 14 minutes as the top-ranked Gaels celebrated homecoming with their ninth win.

Legacy led early, as quarterback Tanoa Alapati hit D’Angelo Lindsey for a 22-yard score and a quick 6-0 lead.

It was all Gorman from there. On the first offensive play following the ensuing kickoff, Russell Booze scored on a 67-yard run. Gage Wilson booted the extra point, and Bishop Gorman would never trail again. Booze led Gorman with 141 yards on four carries.

Martell threw three of his touchdown passes to Cordell Broadus - 18, 28 and 67 yards - and a 31-yard strike to Tyjon Lindsey. Senior Danny Hong replaced Martell and completed all five of his attempts, two for TDs. Hong connected with Lindsey for a 25-yard score and threw a 17-yarder to Nick Nielson.

The Gaels (9-0, 3-0 Southwest) dominated the yardage battle, 475-181.

Alapati completed 12 of 26 passes for 118 yards for Legacy (2-5, 1-1), but was intercepted four times. The Longhorns turned the ball over eight times.

— Sam Leeper

Coronado 40, Eldorado 6 — At Coronado, Nick Trejo scored on his team’s first offensive play and finished with 61 yards on seven carries to help the Cougars.

Coronado took control early, scoring on Trejo’s 8-yard run and Jordan Patterson’s 65-yard sprint up the middle to go ahead 13-0 late in the first quarter.

The Sundevils, who managed just 55 yards of offense in the second half, got on the board with an 89-yard pass from Joshua Brown to Shane Barnes, but Coronado’s Spencer Cofer immediately responded with a 51-yard TD pass to Travis Boman (five receptions for 93 yards) late in the second. Daqu’an Davis (four carries for 107 yards), Brian Johnson and Trejo added second-half TDs for the Cougars.

Barnes led Eldorado with 102 yards on three receptions.

— Jeff Wollard

Mojave 28, Clark 18 — At Clark, Ty Flanagan rushed for 210 yards and 3 touchdowns on 28 carries to help the Rattlers break a three-game losing streak and hand the Chargers their first home loss of the season.

Mojave (5-3, 3-3 Division 1A Sunset) led 20-3 with 7:59 left in the fourth quarter after Elijah Smoot’s 87-yard interception return for a touchdown.

But Clark (4-4, 3-3) came back, as Kareem Warren scored on a 41-yard run on the ensuing possession, and Marquice Stuart followed with a 66-yard return of a Rattler fumble that trimmed the lead to 20-18 with 4:51 left in the game.

But after the Chargers failed to recover an onside kick, Flanagan iced the win for Mojave with a 33-yard touchdown run with 2:08 left.

Flanagan scored on a 3-yard run in the second quarter, then added a 4-yard TD run in the fourth quarter that gave Mojave a 12-3 lead.

— Tim Guesman

Las Vegas 63, Valley 14 — At Las Vegas, the Wildcats scored 42 first-quarter points en route to the victory voer the Vikings.

After the two teams exchanged fumbles on their first possessions, the Wildcats (4-3, 2-0 Northeast) began their scoring barrage. Running back Elijah Hicks ran through the Valley secondary on a twisting 48-yard run and capped off the drive two plays later with a 1-yard touchdown run to give Las Vegas a 7-0 lead. The Vikings (0-6, 0-3) threw an interception on their next possession and Las Vegas quickly capitalized when Trevor Swenson connected with Zachary Loveland on a 27-yard scoring pass to make the score 14-0.

Hicks, who rushed for 155 yards in the quarter, also scored on runs of 38 and 23 yards in the quarter.

Jacob Littlefield recovered a Valley fumble in the end zone for a TD, and Swenson hit Hanoi Rabago on a 26-yard TD pass for the 42-0 lead.

on the Wildcats next possession to increase the lead to 21-0. Two plays later, Valley fumbled the ball in their own end zone and it was recovered by Jacob Littlefield of the Wildcats.

Swenson threw his third touchdown of the game midway through the second quarter when he hit Kyle Christensen on 6-yard pass to give Las Vegas a 49-0 halftime lead.

Kode Mwirigi added a 71-yard kickoff return for a touchdown for the Wildcats.

Valley’s Mario Ganoa had TD runs of 1 and 12 yards.

— Ron Harris

Faith Lutheran 38, Pahrump Valley 14 — At Faith Lutheran, the Crusaders scored five straight times in a span of 24 minutes in the middle of the game to dominate the Trojans.

Faith Lutheran (5-3, 4-2, Division I-A Sunset) was led by a 100-yard rushing night from Christian Marshall and a 235-yard, three-touchdown passing performance from Greg Benson. Mark Rubalcaba had eight receptions for 165 yards with two touchdowns, and Tyler Mahan had four grabs for 48 yards including a 19-yard touchdown.

T.J. Milk amassed 91 yards on 5-of-10 passing, including an 18-yard TD pass to Deon Estes, for Pahrump Valley (3-5, 2-4).

— Neil Grepke

Arbor View 62, Bonanza 0 — At Bonanza, seven players scored as Arbor View remained unbeaten. The Aggies (7-0, 2-0 Northwest) had seven rushing touchdowns, a passing score and returned an interception for a touchdown.

Morris Jackson made the most of his two carries as he took them 60 and 55 yards for touchdowns. Curtis Jones also scored twice on a 42-yard run in the first half and a 25-yard interception return in the third quarter.

Maurice Harvey added 88 rushing yards on four carries including a 61-yard touchdown. Herman Gray racked up 45 yards and a score, while Denajiou McZeal and Dominick Nelson added rushing touchdowns in the win.

Aggies quarterback Bryce Poster passed just three times and completed two for 23 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown to Noah Noce. Poster and Noce added interceptions on defense, and Carter Andrade converted eight of nine extra points.

Bonanza (0-8, 0-3) got 16 rushing yards on eight carries from Chilo Dore and quarterbacks Wyatt Allison and Cannon Reid combined to complete five passes, including three to ByJon Large.

— Mike Bailey

Palo Verde 69, Durango 13 — At Palo Verde, the No. 7 Panthers (4-2, 1-0 Southwest) racked up 433 rushing yards and nine rushing TDs to earn a homecoming victory over the Trailblazers (1-5, 0-2).

Jaren Campbell had TD runs of 10, 20 and 23 yards, and provided an interception and a sack on defense for Palo Verde. Christopher Johnson rushed five times for 111 yards, and Aaron Chisolm had six carries for 105 yards for the Panthers.

The Panthers, who led 50-0 at half, attempted one pass, got a safety by defensive tackle Steven Coon and a 70-yard punt return for a score from Graeson Vereen.

Zayvion Wilson (61 yards) and Jonathan Schofield (16 yards) each caught fourth-quarter TD passes from quarterback K.C. Moore, who connected on 9 of 11 passes for 173 yards for Durango, which got 13 tackles and 94 yards on kick returns from Artie Gallegos.

— Brennan Karle

Centennial 62, Shadow Ridge 14 — At Shadow Ridge, quarterback Juan Rodriguez accounted for 272 offensive yards and five touchdowns to lead the Bulldogs.

Rodriguez completed 7 of 10 passes for 167 yards and three touchdowns, while he led all rushers with 13 carries for 105 yards and two scores for the Bulldogs (7-0, 2-0 Northwest). Rhamondre Stevenson ran for 94 yards on 14 attempts and scored two TDs. Brandan Harley returned the second-half kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown for Centennial.

Shadow Ridge (2-5, 0-2 Southwest) was limited to just 50 yards in the second half. Chris McDearmon led Shadow Ridge with 13 carries for 92 yards and a touchdown.

— W.G. Ramirez

Cimarron-Memorial 38, Desert Oasis 3 — At Cimarron, Derek Morefield threw for 221 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Spartans (3-4, 1-1 Northwest) over the Diamondbacks (1-6, 1-2).

An Antwaun Rainey interception on the first Diamondback offensive play led to a Rasaan Mills 7-yard touchdown reception, and Michael Soukup hauled in a 39-yard TD pass from Morefield to give the Spartans a 17-0 lead. Edwin Jones snagged his second interception on the 1-yard line, and the Spartans drove 99 yards on six plays capped by a 51-yard touchdown from Morefield to Channing Reagan as time expired in the first half.

Mills added a second TD catch with a 24-yarder, and Antonio Barboza recovered a blocked punt in the end zone to complete the rout. Armond Whitney rushed for 90 yards on 18 carries for the Spartans.

— Adam Berchin

Cheyenne 67, Western 0 — At Western, the Desert Shields put up 34 first-quarter points, spoiling Western’s senior night and homecoming.

Cheyenne used an average starting position at the 32-yard line to rush for 332 yards, 228 in the first half. Deriontae Green led all rushers with 96 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries. Matthew LaBonte, Cheyenne’s third quarterback, rushed for 92 yards and three touchdowns. Zavieh Harrell added 78 yards and two touchdowns.

Cheyenne’s longest drive was four plays, going 48 yards in 2:16. Darryl Jones completed the drive with a 28-yard run. The Desert Shields (4-4, 4-2 Sunset) recorded 14 first downs and converted their lone third-down attempt.

Anthony McConnico’s only pass attempt went 19 yards for a touchdown to Jones.

Western fell to 0-8 and 0-6.

— Jesse Vineyard

Del Sol 60, Sunrise Mountain 14 — At Del Sol, the Dragons wore out the Miners in the trenches, using a devastating ground attack and a swarming defense to pick up the homecoming victory.

Del Sol rushed for 370 yards and five touchdowns while running only two pass plays. The Dragons got a breakout night from freshman running back Taaric Flowers, who scored on runs of 29 and 58 yards en route to a 138-yard rushing performance, and he also brought back the second-half kickoff 78 yards for another touchdown.

The Dragons (4-4, 2-4 Division 1-A Sunrise) dominated defensively, recording eight sacks and holding the Miners to just 119 yards. The Del Sol defense scored twice, getting a 36-yard interception return from Juan Fuentes while Ernest Legaspi recovered a poor snap on a punt in the end zone for a third-quarter score.

Daniel Tyus chipped in with two rushing touchdowns for the Dragons, and quarterback Rashaun Lawson broke free for a 44-yard score as part of his 86 yards rushing. Justin Robinson also brought back a kickoff for a touchdown for Del Sol from 83 yards out.

Sunrise Mountain started strong but faded as the game wore on. The highlight of the night of the Miners (1-6, 0-5) was a 90-yard interception return for a score by Trellis Quinn in the second quarter that got Sunrise Mountain on the board. Quarterback Damon Heard picked up a late touchdown on the ground, while Wanya Calahan led the Miners with 61 yards rushing.

— Mike James

Desert Pines 64, Rancho 7 — Quarterback Marckell Grayson threw for three touchdowns and ran for another to lead the Jaguars.

Grayson found Gianni Breland for a 24-yard score on the first drive of the game, then Andre Watts from 37 yards out to end the first quarter. He finished 7 of 13 for 157 yards and added 29 rushing yards.

The Jaguars (7-1) got a boost from their special teams with two punt returns for touchdowns. Trevor Nofoa found the end zone on a 50-yard return in the second quarter, and Breland ran one in from 68 yards early in the second half.

Isaiah Morris tallied 148 yards and three touchdowns on just six carries for Desert Pines, while Jon McCoy caught four passes for 80 yards, including a 50-yard bomb from Grayson in the third quarter.

Rancho (0-8) was held to 169 yards of total offense. Robert Howard carried 22 times for 109 yards, and quarterback Yasser Rebolledo scored the Rams’ only touchdown on a 1-yard sneak.

— Jesse Granger

The Meadows 21, Agassi Prep 14 — At The Meadows, Bryson Navallo ran for 182 yards and two touchdowns on 30 carries to help the Mustangs rally in the fourth quarter to top the Stars.

The win moved them into sole first place in the Division III Southern League.

Trailing 7-6 after three quarters, The Meadows (6-2, 5-0) scored twice in a row in the last period to defeat the Stars (5-2, 4-1).

Navallo ran for 121 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries in the first half as the Mustangs took a 6-0 lead into the break.

But the Stars responded on a Kobe Williams 15-yard TD run to take a 7-6 lead. Williams finished with 96 yards on 10 carries for Agassi Prep.

The Meadows then put together its own long drive and scored midway through the fourth quarter on a 1-yard TD run by Navallo. Quarterback Jacob Gleason connected with Nathan DeVera on the 2-point conversion to make it 14-7.

The Meadows caught a break on the ensuing kickoff when the ball bounced off an Agassi Prep player and was recovered by the Mustangs at the Stars’ 49-yard line. DeVera pushed the lead to 21-7 with 45 seconds remaining after scoring from 11 yards out on fourth down.

Despite being down by two scores, the Stars still had some fight. Quarterback Kameron Burrell hooked up with Zeivaun Ned on a 30-yard touchdown pass with 13 seconds remaining in the game. Burrell completed his only two passes of the night on the drive, which was aided by a penalty against the Mustangs.

Ethan Fridman recovered the Stars’ onside kick to preserve the victory for The Meadows.

— Robert Horne

Moapa Valley 27, Boulder City 0 — At Overton, Nate Cox completed 13 of 20 passes for 250 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Pirates.

Cole Mulcock finished with seven catches for 95 yards and two touchdowns and 30 yards rushing, and Hubert had three grabs for 83 yards and two TDs for Moapa Valley (8-0, 5-0 Division I-A Sunrise), which got 65 yards on the ground from Andrew Huerta.

Logan Branscum rushed 12 times for 35 yards for Boulder City (4-4, 2-3).

Mountain View 50, Laughlin 12 — At Laughlin, Adam Stacey had nine carries for 100 yards and two touchdowns and added a 20-yard interception return for a score as the Saints (3-4, 2-3 Division III Southern) rolled the Cougars (0-7, 0-5).

Stacey also had 22 tackles on defense for Mountain View, which led 32-6 at halftime.

Ian Locke was 3 of 5 for 123 yards and had four carries for 79 yards and a TD for the Saints. Teammate Connor LeBoeuf had 177 yards rushing, 103 yards receiving and two total scores.

Laughlin’s Coda Abati had two receiving touchdowns.

Lincoln County 51, Calvary Chapel 12 — At Panaca, McClain O’Connor ran back the opening kickoff for a touchdown, tossed two TD passes and ran for a score to lead the Lynx over the Lions.

O’Connor completed 6 of 7 passes for 148 yards, hitting Jordan Harrington and Mike Wood on scoring passes, both in the second quarter.

Preston Robbins rushed for 137 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries for the Lynx (4-3, 3-2 Division III Southern).

Calvary Chapel is 0-6, 0-5.

Pahranagat Valley 64, Sandy Valley 14 — At Alamo, Jordan Cryts ran for 188 yards and two touchdowns on five carries as the Panthers took over first place in the Division IV Southern League with a win over the Sidewinders.

Cryts scored on runs of 88 and 49 yards for Pahranagat Valley (7-0, 5-0), which led 32-0 after one quarter.

Tabor Maxwell completed 10 of 17 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns for the Panthers.

Lane Eastham rushed for 91 yards and a score of 25 carries to lead the Sidewinders (6-1, 4-1).

Spring Mountain 68, Indian Springs 0 — At Indian Springs, Sydney Shackerford had two touchdown runs and returned a fumble for a touchdown in the first quarter to lead the Golden Eagles (5-2, 4-1 Division IV Southern) by the Thunderbirds (0-6, 0-4).

Cory Duncan also had a touchdown run and a fumble return for a score for Spring Mountain, which led 30-0 after a quarter and scored four defensive touchdowns and a special teams touchdown in the game.