REGION 10 FOOTBALL WEEK 6 WRAP UP

 

(ST. GEORGE, Utah – Sept. 19, 2022) Another week is in the rearview mirror and four more Region 10 football games with it. We’re now six weeks into the high school football season, and three weeks into the Region 10 schedule. Believe it or not, we’re just a month away from the state playoffs. The same thing happens every year. You wait all summer for high school football, and if you blink, you miss it.

The third week of Region 10 Football was a mixed bag, as some of the results were exactly what we expected, while others sent shockwaves through the region. We had our fair share of blowouts, and an overtime thriller as Cedar and Pine View played the only game decided by one score.

Let’s break down each game and discover how it all played out.

DESERT HILLS 56, DIXIE 21

The Flyers and Thunder prepared all week for what was already going to be the Region 10 (and probably all of 4A) Game of the Week. Add in the return of Desert Hills’ senior leader, and you most certainly had everyone’s attention drawn to the contest. Thunder quarterback Noah Fuailetolo had his Michael Jordan moment last week in getting to declare, “I’m Back.”

Word on the street is Noah couldn’t find an operational fax machine to send the message to everyone in region and state, so he probably just settled for a text, or social media post, or whatever the kids are doing these days. In reality, he probably didn’t say much to anyone, so as to not let the cat out of the bag. Midweek declaration or not, Noah was back and ready to make up for lost time.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the field, one of Dixie’s senior leaders was noticeably absent. A week after scoring three touchdowns in the first half against Pine View, Seth Takau was sidelined with an injury for the second time this year. Both roster moves would have a direct impact on the outcome of the game.

After Dixie took an early 7-0 lead on a 2-yard run from Jalen Schultz, Fuailetolo and the Thunder answered with two consecutive touchdowns to take a 14-7 lead midway through the second quarter. Fuailetolo connected with Lincoln Holmes for a 43-yard touchdown strike to tie the game in the first quarter, then later tossed for Cyrus Polo from three yards out to take the lead.

The Flyers responded to tie the game at 14-14 when Louie Bennett broke free for a 25-yard touchdown run at the 5:47 mark in the second frame. But the lead didn’t last long, as Fuailetolo fired his third touchdown pass of the first half, a 13-yard laser to Tayven Mortensen to retake a 21-14 advantage before halftime.

The Thunder never looked back, tacking on three touchdowns in the third quarter to take complete control of the game. Tyden Morris found the end zone on a 3-yard run on the first Desert Hills possession of the frame, then scored again on an 8-yard run after the Thunder defense forced a Dixie fumble. Already sporting a three-touchdown lead, Holmes notched his second touchdown of the night on a 54-yard punt return. Kona Crowell would put the finishing touches on the quarter with a 6-yard touchdown run to give the Thunder a 49-14 lead.

The Flyers pulled a touchdown back early in the fourth quarter when Jeffrey Christian scampered into the end zone for a 14-yard score to pull to within 49-21, but Crowell earned the touchdown back for Desert Hills with a 3-yard run at the 3:31 mark to push the score to the final tally of 56-21.

Desert Hills Game Ball: Noah Fuailetolo. Just over a month after tearing his ACL in the Thunder’s week-one win at Brighton, Fuailetolo returned to jumpstart Desert Hills and send shockwaves through the region and state. Fuailetolo competed 19-of-27 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns in his return.

Dixie Game Ball: Jalen Schultz. Schultz completed 14-of-22 passes for 211 yards, while rushing for a touchdown.

CEDAR 31, PINE VIEW 28 (OT)

Playing in front a packed house for Homecoming, the Pine View Panthers did not look like a team still in search of its first win of the season. In fact, even the Cedar announcers on KUSB 590 noted that, “These Panthers sure don’t look like an 0-4 team.” And while Cedar would eventually hold on for the win, Pine View proved it isn’t just going to roll over. The Panthers are getting better each week and will win some games before the year is over, and it very well could shake up the region standings when it happens.

Cedar opened the game with one touchdown in the first quarter and another in the second quarter to take a 14-0 lead. Koden Lunt scored both touchdowns on the ground, the first from 11 yards out and the second from four yards, to give the Reds the early advantage.

Pine View responded just before halftime, marching 75 yards in less than 90 seconds to cut the lead in half at 14-7. Tyler Brown completed 6-of-6 passes for 73 yards on the drive, including a 10-yard toss to Blake Stucki for the touchdown.

The Panthers forced a three-and-out and a Cedar punt on opening drive of the third quarter, but a fumble on the punt return gave the ball back to the Reds. Spencer Bell connected with Ammon York for a 30-yard touchdown on the next play to give Cedar a 21-7 lead.

Unfazed, Pine View countered with a scoring drive of its own, marching 80 yards in eight plays to cut the lead to 21-14. Brown capped the drive with his second touchdown pass of the game, a 23-yard connection with Matthew Costa.

The Panthers defense got in on the action on the next drive as Jacob Sersansie picked off a Lunt pass to set up Brown’s third touchdown pass of the game, a 5-yard strike to Quincy Jones, to tie the game at 21-21. Sersansie would later find the end zone on a 2-yard run to give the Panthers a 28-21 lead early in the fourth quarter and cap a stretch of 21 unanswered points for Pine View.

Cedar bounced back on its next possession and quickly marched into Pine View territory. After a defensive pass interference penalty moved the Reds into the red zone, Lunt connected with Logen Wesolowski for an 8-yard touchdown to tie the game at 28-28.

The teams traded punts until the Reds drove to the PV 3-yard line with eight seconds left and a chance to win the game with a field goal. However, the attempt clanged off the left upright, and the contest headed to overtime.

The Cedar defense came up big on Pine View’s offensive possession in the extra period. After the Panthers had a touchdown pass called back on an illegal touching penalty, the Reds recorded a sack on third down to push the Panthers out of field goal range, and forced an incompletion on fourth down.

The Reds ran three plays during their possession, setting up a 38-yard field goal attempt and a chance at redemption for Parker Kucifer. Cedar’s senior kicker didn’t let a second chance slip by, splitting the uprights to seal the 31-28 win for the Reds.

Cedar Game Ball: Parker Kucifer. After missing a game-winning field goal in regulation, Kucifer erased that memory, winning the game in overtime from even further out.

Pine View Game Ball: Tyler Brown. The senior quarterback connected on 27-of-37 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns, giving the Panthers the best chance they’ve had for a win this season.

SNOW CANYON 47, HURRICANE 0

Snow Canyon’s Homecoming date with Hurricane was the first chance the Warriors had to take the field since dropping a 27-25 decision at Crimson Cliffs the week before. Gone was the time for could-haves and should-haves. It was time to move on. And move on they did.

Hunter Johnson returned from injury and led Snow Canyon to three first-quarter touchdowns to take a 21-0 lead. Johnson connected with Semaj Thompson for a 25-yard touchdown, then ran for two touchdowns (53 yards and four yards) on the Warriors’ next two drives.

Snow Canyon added two more touchdowns in the second quarter on a 39-yard pass and a 6-yard strike from Johnson to Will Warner to extend the lead to 33-0 at halftime. The Warriors wrapped up the scoring in the third quarter on two touchdown runs from Max Reynolds (20 yards, three yards) to push the score to the final tally of 47-0.

Snow Canyon Game Ball: Hunter Johnson. Johnson didn’t skip a beat after missing Snow Canyon’s game at Crimson Cliffs, completing 18-of-24 passes for 217 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing for 90 yards and two more touchdowns.

Hurricane Game Ball: Carter Ashby. Ashby led the team with seven catches for 58 yards, fighting for extra yardage and absorbing big hits from the SC defense on each catch.

CRIMSON CLIFFS 41, CYPRUS 8

The Mustangs opted to travel north to Magna, Utah, for an out-of-region game at 6A Cyprus on their Region 10 bye. Crimson Cliffs looked to make it two straight over the Pirates after claiming a win last year at home.

Crimson Cliffs struck first on a 74-yard catch-and-run touchdown from Steele Barben to Luke Childs to take a 7-0 lead with just under three minutes left in the first quarter. The play ripped the floodgates open, as the Mustangs added three more touchdowns in the second quarter.

Barben added two more touchdown passes in the second frame, a 13-yard toss to Boston Adamson and a 10-yard strike to Jordan Eaton, while McCord Christiansen plunged into the end zone from the 1-yard line to make it 28-0 at halftime.

The Mustangs wrapped up their scoring in the third quarter when Barben tallied his fourth touchdown pass of the game on a 51-yard dart to Eaton, and Parker Andrus scooped up a Cyprus fumble and sprinted to the end zone for a touchdown.

The Pirates scored and added a 2-point conversion with 32 seconds left in the game to push the score to the final tally of 41-8.

Crimson Cliffs Game Ball: Steele Barben. The Mustangs quarterback was nearly perfect, completing 12-of-13 passes for 253 yards and four touchdowns.

 

REGION 10 STANDINGS

 

                              Region   Overall

CRIMSON CLIFFS     2-0     5-1

CEDAR                     2-1     3-3

SNOW CANYON       2-1     3-3

DESERT HILLS         1-1     4-2

DIXIE                       1-1     3-2

HURRICANE             1-2     1-5

PINE VIEW               0-3     0-5

 

 

THIS WEEK’S SCHEDULE

 

Dixie at Cedar, 7 p.m.

Desert Hills at Snow Canyon, 7 p.m.

Hurricane at Crimson Cliffs, 7 p.m.