Las Vegas High School's Colin Pretlow hits Hug's Ron Johnson (6) on Saturday in the Wildcats' 23-0 victory in the Class 4A football state title game at Mackay Stadium in Reno. Photos by Debra Reed / Special to the Review-Journal Wildcats players Jovan Massey, left, and Ricquon Massey celebrate during the victory, Las Vegas' third consecutive shutout. Running back Jamal Lomax, who rushed for 135 yards and two touchdowns, holds the Class 4A state championship plaque after Las Vegas High's 23-0 victory over Hug on Saturday in Reno.

RENO -- Las Vegas High senior linebacker Josh Winfield summed up his feelings in one sentence.

"Defense wins championships, that's all I've got to say," Winfield said.

He couldn't have been more on the mark. The Wildcats rode a dominant defensive performance to a 23-0 victory over Hug in the Class 4A state football championship game on Saturday at UNR's Mackay Stadium.

Las Vegas held Hug to 100 yards of offense in posting its third consecutive shutout. The Wildcats allowed a total of 15 points in five playoff games and just 28 points in their last eight games.

"We knew that the defense is our strong point, and we had to make sure that we finished it for a last time for our seniors," said defensive lineman Xavaier Cleveland, who helped lead the charge by recovering two fumbles.

Las Vegas shut down Hug's running game. The Hawks (12-2) entered the game averaging 247.6 rushing yards and 30.5 points per game. Las Vegas limited Hug to 18 yards on the ground. The Wildcats also sacked Hug quarterback Darryl Feemster six times.

"We knew that they were a running team, so if we stopped the run, we could make them pass," Cleveland said. "We stopped both, really, for the whole game. They could not run on us.

"Our whole D front, we get really good pressure on them. We're the best in the state."

Las Vegas coach Chris Faircloth said shutting down Hug's inside running game was especially key. The Hawks feature a pair of 205-pound running backs, and both had rushed for more than 1,100 yards entering the game behind an offensive line that averages 252 pounds.

"We were not going to let them run the ball inside, that was our focus," Las Vegas coach Chris Faircloth said. "We run well. We knew if we could get them to run lateral, we had a good chance to win this football game."

The Wildcats took the opening kick and drove 63 yards on eight plays, capped by Jamal Lomax's 16-yard TD run.

It was the only score of the first half, but Las Vegas quickly seized the momentum after halftime.

Feemster was sacked by Las Vegas defensive end Nate Carter on the first offensive play of the second half, and Cleveland pounced on the ball. Though the Wildcats wouldn't score on the ensuing drive, O'Ryan Bradley's pooch kick forced Hug to start its next drive at its own 1-yard line.

After Hug punted, Lomax had a 44-yard run to help set up a 2-yard sneak by Bradley to put the Wildcats up 14-0 with 7:03 to go in the third quarter.

"That was huge, because we were searching for some type of momentum," Faircloth said. "We needed to try and get something going, and we kept squandering opportunities. We knew if we got two scores up, we had a great chance to win this game."

A short punt gave Las Vegas great field position on its next drive. The Wildcats took over at the Hug 41 and covered that distance in six plays, five of them runs by Lomax. His 8-yard TD run capped the drive and put Las Vegas up 20-0.

After Hug fumbled the ensuing kickoff, the Wildcats got a 30-yard field goal by Avant Gates to close the scoring.

Turnovers and poor field position hindered Hug all game. The Hawks best scoring opportunity came in the second quarter when the team drove to the Las Vegas 17. But Las Vegas' Colin Pretlow intercepted Feemster in the end zone to end the threat.

Hug turned the ball over four times, and three drives started inside their 5-yard line. Hug's best starting field position was at its own 43, and the Hawks started 10 of 13 drives inside their own 25. Las Vegas had nine drives start in Hug territory.

"The difference coming out in the second half was field position," Hug coach Rollins Stallworth said. "We kind of had ourselves in a hole the whole game and just never could dig ourselves out."

Lomax finished with 135 yards on 19 carries to lead the offense. Carter paced the defense with 7 1/2 tackles, including 3 1/2 sacks. Winfield added seven tackles, including 1 1/2 for loss, and Jashaad Gaines had five tackles, 2 1/2 for loss.

Faircloth said his team simply refused to lose.

"Everything you've worked for the entire season is at stake," Faircloth said. "And our kids, we hammered that home to them all the time. We worked too hard to let this go any other way."

The loss ended a Cinderella run for Hug, which was making its first appearance in the state championship game.

"I'm extremely proud of them," Stallworth said. "I'll probably be more proud of them tomorrow and the next day."