Defense carries No. 4 Shadow Ridge to win over Mojave — PHOTOS
Shadow Ridge’s defense paved the way for the Mustangs to win their 5A Desert League opener against visiting Mojave 28-14 on Friday night.
“Nothing’s been easy this year. We got in here and got a win against a good football team,” Shadow Ridge head coach Travis Foster said. “We came away with a win late. I’m just glad we could pull this one out.”
In the first half, the Mustangs (4-1, 1-0), ranked No. 4 in the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Class 5A rankings, took advantage of several Mojave mistakes.
Most notably, on its first offensive possession, Shadow Ridge went three-and-out but was awarded a first down on its punt following a roughing-the-kicker penalty. The penalty put Shadow Ridge on its own 46-yard line, and four plays later, the Mustangs had a 7-0 lead on sophomore Isaiah Jones’s 4-yard touchdown run.
Shadow Ridge’s defense came to life late in the second quarter when it began pressuring Mojave quarterback RaJahn Butler behind the line of scrimmage.
On a third down at Mojave’s 40-yard line, Shadow Ridge got to Butler, who scrambled backward to the 30 before throwing an interception to senior Ula Cox. With no one behind Butler, Cox returned it for a touchdown to extend Shadow Ridge’s lead to 14-7 before halftime.
The only blemish on the Mustangs’ defense in the first half was a 75-yard touchdown connection between Butler and junior S’Marion Coleman on the Rattlers’ second play from scrimmage.
“Our defense played really, really well. Other than two plays, I don’t know if they drove on us once,” Foster said. “I’m really proud of the defensive effort today.”
In the second half, Shadow Ridge’s defense continued to dominate, limiting Mojave (1-4, 0-1) to just 84 yards of offense. In total, Mojave managed only 182 yards.
Again, there was just one lapse, as Butler scored on a 32-yard rush. Fortunately for Shadow Ridge, its offense had already added another touchdown — a 31-yard run from junior Xavion Cross — on the prior possession, making the score 21-7 before Mojave closed the gap to 21-14.
As time wound down in the fourth quarter, Shadow Ridge sealed the game when Jones scored his second touchdown of the day on a goal-line run.
Shadow Ridge’s triple-option offense proved successful once again, putting up 235 total yards while not completing a pass.
With a win under its belt in the 5A Desert League, Shadow Ridge now turns its attention to Citrus Ridge (California) in its next game.
