REGION 10 FOOTBALL WEEK 8 RECAP

 

(ST. GEORGE, Utah – Oct. 3, 2022) Week eight of the Utah high school football season is in the books and just two weeks (only one Friday) remain on the 4A regular-season schedule.

How did the three Region 10 games play out over the weekend? Glad you asked. Let’s get to the breakdowns.

All three favored teams earned wins on Friday, as Snow Canyon rolled to its third consecutive home victory, and Crimson Cliffs and Desert Hills claimed convincing triumphs on the road.

SNOW CANYON 56, DIXIE 12

September was a good great month for Snow Canyon. Despite dropping a heartbreaker to top-ranked Crimson Cliffs, the Warriors outscored their opponents by a 170-59 count en route to a 3-1 mark in the month. After back-to-back blowout wins over Hurricane and Desert Hills, Snow Canyon picked up where it left off against Dixie on Friday.

The Warriors quickly extinguished any extra momentum the Flyers picked up in a gritty road win at Cedar the week before, scoring three touchdowns in the opening frame to build a 21-0 lead.

After forcing a Dixie three-and-out and a punt on the game’s opening drive, Snow Canyon wasted no time finding the end zone when Will Warner fielded a low, bouncing punt at the 18-yard line and sprinted 82 yards the other way for a touchdown.

Warner scored again later in the quarter when the Warriors capped a 10-play, 67-yard drive with a 20-yard dart from Hunter Johnson to Warner. Snow Canyon put the cherry on top of the first quarter when Brenden Smith picked off a Dixie pass, followed by a 13-yard run by Teagan Hugh for a touchdown and a 21-0 lead. The Warriors would push their streak of consecutive points to 28 early in the second quarter when Johnson found Jake Hill for a 6-yard touchdown pass.

The Flyers responded, needing just one play to find pay dirt on the ensuing drive. Senior tight end Mason Kesterson lined up to on the right edge on first down and slowly drifted toward the sideline after the snap. After faking a screen pass to the left, Jalen Schultz tossed the ball to Kesterson, who rumbled 83 yards for a touchdown, breaking three tackles along the way.

But before the Dixie crowd could finish cheering, Warner ripped off an 89-yard touchdown return on the ensuing kickoff to push the lead back to 35-6.

Kesterson scored another touchdown late in the second quarter on a pick-six, snagging a Johnson pass at midfield and sprinting to the end zone to cut the lead to 35-12 with just over a minute before halftime.

However, in a near carbon copy of the plays after the previous Flyer touchdown, Snow Canyon needed just 12 seconds to find the end zone. After Dixie booted a touchback on the kickoff, Johnson found Hugh on a screen pass out of the backfield for an 80-yard catch-and-run touchdown.

The Warriors would add another touchdown before halftime when Dahrius Romander snagged an interception, followed by a 35-yard strike from Johnson to Brooks Esplin to extend the lead to 49-12 at the break.

Snow Canyon scored the final touchdown of the game late in the third quarter when Rockwell Jones capped a 16-play drive with a 6-yard scamper around the right edge and into the end zone. Meanwhile, the Warrior defense pitched a second-half shutout to clinch the 56-12 win and close out their regular season home schedule in style.

Snow Canyon Game Ball: Will Warner. Warner put on a show, scoring three touchdowns in the first half: an 82-yard punt return, a 20-yard reception, and an 89-yard kickoff return.

Dixie Game Ball: Mason Kesterson. On a tough night for Dixie, Mason Kesterson was a star, scoring on a 83-yard pitch-and catch, as well as a 48-yard pick-six.

CRIMSON CLIFFS 40, PINE VIEW 14

Crimson Cliffs entered Friday’s contest as winners of four consecutive games, including two at home and two on the road, and was leading Region 10 in the standings and multiple statistical categories. Still, head coach Wayne Alofipo wanted to see his team start faster. No more waiting until the second half to put teams away. And that’s exactly what the Mustangs did on Friday at Pine View.

Tyler West set the tone for Crimson Cliffs with a 26-yard opening kickoff return. Steele Barben and the Mustang offense then methodically marched 71 yards in 10 plays to the end zone, scoring on a 15-yard pass from Barben to Boston Adamson to take the early 7-0 lead.

The Crimson defense got in on the quick start later in the first quarter, forcing a Pine View turnover-on-downs after Tyson Dinsmore set the Panthers up at the CC 24-yard line with an interception.

The Mustangs extended the lead to 13-0 early in the second quarter when McCord Christiansen capped a 9-play drive with a 7-yard touchdown sprint up the middle and into the end zone.

The Crimson defense again took its turn on the next Pine View possession when Kaden Haws picked up a Pine View fumble and rumbled to the end zone to give the Mustangs a 20-0 lead midway through the frame.

Needing a touchdown to stay in the game, the Panthers countered with a 14-play, 80-yard drive, capped by a 10-yard touchdown pass from Tyler Brown to Blake Stucki, to cut the lead to 20-7.

Crimson Cliffs countered with its fourth scoring drive of the first half, moving inside the 10-yard line with a 45-yard screen pass from Barben to Christiansen. Three plays later, Mason Topalian plunged through the line and into the end zone from 1-yard out to push the lead to 26-7.

However, the Mustangs left 42 seconds on clock, just enough time for Pine View to answer. After a 10-yard run by Alex Sanchez, Brown completed three passes for 68 yards, including a 35-yard touchdown toss to Brock Harris to cut the lead to 26-14 as the buzzer sounded for halftime.

But Pine View wouldn’t get any closer. Crimson Cliffs would take advantage of a miscue on a Panther punt attempt in the third quarter, scoring two plays later when Barben found Luke Childs for a 10-yard touchdown. The Mustangs capped the scoring in the fourth quarter, when Barben connected on a 17-yard touchdown strike to Adamson to push the score to the final tally of 40-14.

Crimson Cliffs Game Ball: Kaden Haws. Haws set up camp in the Pine View back field en route to a team-high five tackles and one sack, as well as a fumble-return touchdown.

Pine View Game Ball: Brock Harris. Harris made six catches for 78 yards and a touchdown that pulled Pine View within 12 points at halftime.

DESERT HILLS 49, HURRICANE 0

Following a tough loss at Snow Canyon the week before, Desert Hills looked to move on with a region matchup at Hurricane. And move on it did. After a scoreless first quarter, Desert Hills broke the game open with 21 points in the second quarter. Tyden Morris scored first on a 1-yard run, followed by an 8-yard touchdown pass from Noah Fuailetolo to Javiyen Cummings. Kona Crowell capped the first-half scoring with an 8-yard touchdown run to push the lead to 21-0.

Crowell would add two more touchdowns in the third quarter, a 1-yard run and a 30-yard reception, to extend the Thunder lead to 35-0.

Desert Hills tacked on two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter when Beau Wall connected with Ayzen Cummings for a 75-yard touchdown pass, followed by a 75-yard touchdown run by Wall to push the score to the final tally of 49-0.

Desert Hills Game Ball: Kona Crowell. Crowell rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns, while snagging two passes for 37 yards and a third touchdown.

Hurricane Game Ball: RJ Wright. Wright led all Hurricane receivers with a game-high nine catches for 90 yards.

 

 

 

REGION 10 STANDINGS

 

                              Region   Overall

CRIMSON CLIFFS     4-0     7-1

SNOW CANYON       4-1     5-3

DESERT HILLS         2-2     5-3

DIXIE                       2-2     4-3

CEDAR                     2-2     3-4

HURRICANE             1-4     1-7

PINE VIEW               0-4     0-6

 

 

THIS WEEK’S SCHEDULE

 

Crimson Cliffs at Dixie, 7 p.m.

Cedar at Desert Hills, 7 p.m.

Snow Canyon at Pine View, 7 p.m.

Cottonwood at Hurricane, 7 p.m.