Arbor View wears out Silverado

Arbor View certainly didn’t want to find itself behind Silverado at halftime Friday night.

The fact the Aggies were able to respond so well to the situation, however, might prove to be as valuable a lesson as they could have hoped to learn in their season opener.

Arbor View (1-0) shut out the Skyhawks in the second half en route to a 35-7 road victory.

“I walked in the locker room at halftime and said, ‘You know what, this is going to make us better in five or six weeks. Being behind right now, let’s see what this team is made of,” Arbor View coach Dan Barnson said. “Don’t get me wrong, I hoped we’d come out and do well, and we did. But sometimes being in that situation and learning from it, having a productive halftime and making the adjustments and putting them in action, is going to carry over down the road.”

The Aggies did everything right after the break.

Arbor View scored on its first four possessions of the second half and limited Silverado (0-1) to just one first down — on a penalty — over that stretch.

Herman Gray was the biggest factor offensively for the Aggies’ success.

The senior ran for 222 yards on 23 carries, including two touchdowns.

“I think we came up with our chins a little too high because we didn’t really expect to be challenged,” he said. “We let them get some momentum in the first half with some of the mistakes we were making.”

It wasn’t all bad for Gray and Arbor View in the first half. He was a major factor in an 18-play, 98-yard drive that encompassed nearly the entire second quarter and put the Aggies ahead 6-0 with 2:36 remaining.

The Skyhawks immediately answered with a 96-yard touchdown run by Deyon McKinney, who finished with 149 yards.

Barnson said the long drive late in the half helped set the tone for the second-half success despite the 7-6 deficit.

“That’s pretty good. We’ll take that. That’s kind of who we are and what we’re made of. Don’t get me wrong, I like the one-play, 60 yarders, too. But grinding them out is kind of our thing,” he said. “We went into halftime and kind of knew if we just stuck to our guns and stuck with the plan, we’d be all right, and we were.”

Arbor View held the ball much of the third quarter as well, taking the lead on a 3-yard run by Gray with 2:15 remaining.

The Aggies did the most damage in the final period, scoring three times on the ground in the fourth quarter.

“We kept the ball away from them, and their lack of depth kind of came into play a little bit in the second half,” Barnson said. “They got kind of tired, and we just wore them out a little bit.”

Senior quarterback Bryce Poster finished 5 of 6 for 50 yards and ran for 52 yards and a touchdown for Arbor View.

■ Basic 49, Valley 0 — At Basic, quarterback Aeneas McAllister’s three second-half touchdowns gave the Wolves their first win. Basic led 21-0 at halftime before exploding for 28 points in third quarter to put away the Vikings.

McAllister completed 9 of 11 passes for 106 yards and ran 21 yards for a touchdown. Running back Sean White contributed 40 yards and a score on eight carries for Basic (1-1).

Despite gaining 142 yards on the ground Valley (0-2) was held scoreless. The Vikings were led junior running back Jaesion Flores, who rushed for 71 yards on five carries.

— Jordan Aguilar

■ Cimarron-Memorial 48, Durango 7 — At Durango, senior Maurice Bennett scored four touchdowns on his first five touches and added another score in the second half as the Spartans rode defense and special teams past the Trailblazers.

Bennett raced the opening kickoff 91 yards for a score. Durango (0-1) answered with a six-play, 61-yard drive, capped by a 35-yard pitch for a touchdown by Leontre Austin to tie it at 7-7.

Bennett returned the ensuing kickoff 79 yards for a TD and added scoring runs of 1 yard and 26 yards to push the lead to 28-7 at the end of the first quarter.

Cimarron-Memoiral’s Armond Whitney supplied a 2-yard TD plunge late in the second quarter, and teammate Stone Stevenson provided a juggling interception which gave the Spartans (2-0) the ball on Durango’s 15-yard line. Quarterback Derek Morefield connected three plays later with wideout Joe Tito for a TD strike over the middle to make it 41-7 at halftime.

Bennett capped a 60-yard drive, keyed by a 37-yard pass to Tito, with a 29-yard TD run to cap the scoring early in the third quarter.

Whitney finished with 62 yards rushing, and Stevenson was 5 for 6 on extra points.

Austin tallied 82 yards rushing, and Daniel Medina had an interception for Durango.

— Brennan Karle

■ Spring Valley 41, Bonanza 0 — At Spring Valley, the Grizzlies racked up 313 rushing yards and rolled to the Banner Game victory over the Bengals.

Spring Valley (1-1) wasted no time on its opening drive as Marcus Dawson took the read option from Christian Tasi 85 yards for a touchdown on the third play from scrimmage. After a Bonanza three-and-out, Dawson again took the read option from Tasi for a 49-yard touchdown. The Grizzlies ran for 224 yards in the first half, also helped by Michael Bianco’s 51 yards on 11 carries, including a 4-yard touchown run to put the Grizzlies up 34-0 at the half.

The Grizzlies recored six sacks, three by Drazen Tojic. The Grizzlies also intercepted Bonanza quarterback Wyatt Allison three times, two by Antonio Wallace, who returned his first interception 55 yards for a touchdown. Spring Valley limited Bonanza (1-1) to minus-15 rushing yards and 55 yards overall.

— Jesse Vineyard

■ Sierra Vista 34, Desert Oasis 14 — At Sierra Vista, Maliek Broady ran for 115 yards and the Lions intercepted the Diamondbacks (0-2) five times for their second win in as many games.

Broady found the end zone from 1 yard out on the Lions’ first possession, and on the following Diamondbacks drive, Randall Grimes returned an interception 99 yards for a score. Broady added a 26-yard touchdown reception from Oscar Aliaga to give the Lions (2-0) an early 21-0 lead.

Quarterback Qwade Huff scored his second rushing touchdown to cut the lead to 28-14 with just under five minutes to play, but Grimes added an 82-yard interception return for a touchdown as time expired. Colby Ceniza also had two interceptions for the Lions.

— Adam Berchin

■ Liberty 58, Shadow Ridge 26 — At Liberty, freshman quarterback Kenyon Oblad threw for 358 yards and four touchdowns to help the No. 2-ranked Patriots outgun the Mustangs.

Oblad threw TD passes of 34, 21, 13 and 34 yards for Liberty (2-0), which overcame three Shadow Ridge kickoff returns for touchdowns, as well as 18 Patriot penalties totaling 190 yards.

Despite being outgained by 240 yards in the first half, the Mustangs trailed just 17-13 after Christian De Jesus scored on a 5-yard run with 5:43 left in the second quarter.

The Patriots answered with a nineplay, 65-yard drive capped by Oblad’s 21-yard strike to a sliding Bradley Villora in the left side of the end zone which extended the lead to 24-13 with 2:44 left before halftime.

Shadow Ridge (0-1) did not go quietly, as Malik Jackson opened the second half with a 92-yard kickoff return to trim the lead to 24-20. But Ethan Dedeaux took over the third quarter, hauling in touchdown passes from Oblad of 13 and 34 yards, then returning a punt 48 yards for a touchdown to push the lead to 44-20.

Darlon Acohido paced the Patriots with 10 receptions for 160 yards. Darius Alston led Liberty’s ground attack with 14 carries for 62 yards and a score.

De-Zohn Rogers had a 75-yard kickoff return in the first quarter for Shadow Ridge, then added a 68-yard kickoff return for a score in the fourth quarter.

— Tim Guesman

■ Faith Lutheran 40, Virgin Valley 6 — At Faith Lutheran, the Crusaders pounced on the Bulldogs early, using touchdown receptions by Christian Marshall and Mark Rubalcaba and scoring runs from Marshall and the first of two field goals by Ryan Callan to take a 25-0 lead.

Faith senior Greg Benson passed for 201 yards and two touchdowns. Virgin Valley’s Cody Jones came off the bench to pass for 97 yards, including a 65-yard TD pass to Diego Burriel.

On the ground, Faith (1-1) was led by 84 yards on 12 carries from Alfred Soboyejo, while the Bulldogs got 65 yards on 11 carries from Jones.

Faith’s Nick Wendel had interceptions on consecutive drives with the Bulldogs (1-1) in Crusader territory.

— Neil Grepke

■ Mojave 32, Chaparral 26 — At Mojave, Lamaja Cunningham raced 23 yards for a touchdown with 2:26 left in the game to lead the Rattlers over the Cowboys.

Cunningham came off the bench to replace starting quarterback Zack Arave, who suffered a shoulder injury late in the first half, and completed 3 of 5 passes for 31 yards and rushed 15 times for 73 yards. Running back Ty Flanagan led the Rattlers’ speedy rushing game with 105 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown. Flanagan also caught two passes for 30 yards, including a 29-yard TD strike from Arave in the first quarter, for Mojave (2-0).

Before suffering a stinger, Arave completed 3 of 4 passes for 75 yards and two TDs, while he ran for 43 yards on five carries and one rushing score.

Casey Acosta led Chaparral (0-2) with 110 yards and a touchdown on 10 rushes. Acosta returned the second-half kickoff 85 yards for a touchdown.

— W.G. Ramirez

■ Eldorado 42, Sunrise Mountain 12 — At Eldorado, quarterback Deven Dabbs threw for 184 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Sun Devils.

Dabbs opened the scoring with a 10-yard pass to Carl Crayton two plays after an interception of Sunrise Mountain quarterback Stephan Wright. Dabbs hit Shane Barnes with a 31-yard TD pass in the second quarter for a 14-0 lead.

The same combination of Dabbs and Barnes combined for a second 31-yard touchdown pass early in the third quarter for the Sun Devils (2-0), and the lead blossomed to 28-0 after Anthony Silva returned an interception 20 yards for a score.

The lead was 42-0 before the Miners (0-2) got their offense moving. Dante Calahan’s 1-yard plunge and an 11-yard rush by Wright provided their two scores.

— Ron Harris

■ Del Sol 46, Western 6 — Junior running back Jay Peete rushed for 80 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Dragons to their second straight win.

Peete started things with a 30-yard touchdown run on the opening drive. Senior halfback Tommy Kilen finished 69 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries while converting three two-point conversions.

Del Sol (2-0) held Western to minus-47 yards of total offense in the first half and led 46-0 at halftime.

After a running clock was implemented in the second half, the Warriors (0-2) found success through the air. Senior quarterback Wyatt Rozea completed 6 of 25 passes for 120 yards and a 7-yard score to Miles Snyder in the fourth quarter.

Wide receiver Kwan Carter led Western with four catches for 82 yards.

— Jesse Granger

■ Desert Pines 42, Clark 40 — At Desert Pines, Isaiah Morris scored three touchdowns, converted two 2-point conversions and intercepted two passes as the Jaguars held off the Chargers.

The Jaguars (2-0) needed every bit of Morris’ heroics as the offense struggled, turning the ball over five times and not gaining a single first down in the second half. Desert Pines also hurt itself with more than 100 yards in penalties for the second week in a row.

Morris scored the game’s first touchdown on a 1-yard run. Later in the second quarter with the score tied 14-14 and the Chargers driving, Morris picked off a pass from Clark’s Nick Kinnard and raced 69 yards for a touchdown that put the Jaguars up 20-14.

After the Chargers (1-1) tied the score at 28-28 late in the third quarter on Ty’Rek Well’s 1-yard touchdown plunge, Morris returned the ensuing kickoff 82 yards to put the Jaguars up 34-28.

Morris rushed for 63 yards on 11 carries and caught one pass for 33 yards.

— Robert Horne

■ Canyon Springs 28, Cheyenne 13 — At Canyon Springs, Zaviontay Stevenson rushed 11 times for 165 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Pioneers past the Desert Shields.

Though Cheyenne (0-2) took a first-quarter lead on a 2-yard TD plunge by David Walker, Stevenson’s 48-yard scoring sprint tied it at 7-7 just 52 seconds later.

Stevenson tacked on a TD run of 33 yards in the second quarter and increased the Pioneers’ lead to 21-7 with a 58-yard run up the middle in the third.

No. 8 Canyon Springs (1-0) capitalized on one of several Cheyenne mistakes when Greg Banks returned a fumble for a 91-yard TD to seal the win late in the third. Bradley Alexander completed 7 of 17 pases for the Pioneers.

Zavieh Harrell carried 10 times for 145 yards to lead the Desert Shields.

— Jeff Wollard

■ Las Vegas 60, Rancho 7 — At Las Vegas, the Wildcats retained The Bone with an impressive first-half onslaught that buried the Rams.

In the 58th edition of the state’s oldest rivalry, sixth-ranked Las Vegas (1-0) scored early and often to capture its 19th straight win against Rancho (0-1). The Wildcats, who led 47-0 at halftime, outgained the Rams 400-41 and didn’t need to punt until the fourth quarter with the game well in hand.

Elias Miller and Trevor Swenson led the way for Las Vegas. Miller scored four times, twice on the ground and twice on the end of Swenson passes. The senior running back scored on a 68-yard run on the Wildcats’ second play from scrimmage and finished with 186 total yards. Swenson threw for three touchdowns and scored another on a 56-yard run midway through the second quarter. He accounted for 190 total yards.

Rancho got on the board in the fourth quarter when Angel Walker hauled in a 31-yard touchdown pass from Yasser Rebolledo. Robert Howard led the Rams with 51 yards on 12 carries.

— Mike James

■ Pershing County 8, The Meadows 0 — At The Meadows, Pershing County blocked a punt late in the fourth quarter and turned it into a 7-yard touchdown run by Marcus Nester with 4:04 remaining as the visiting Mustangs won their opener.

The winning drive started on The Meadows’ 35-yard line with 6:43 to play. Quarterback Angel Ramirez ran for 17 yards to get the visitors inside the red zone, and Nester scored on a fourth-down run later in the drive. The Meadows (0-2) got the ball back, but three sacks by Pershing County (1-0) sealed the victory.

Bryson Navallo led the hosts with 35 rushing yards on 14 attempts and caught three passes for 10 yards. Quarterback Mike Gleason completed 5 of 16 passes for 37 yards. Ethan Friman caught two passes for 27 yards.

— Mike Bailey

■ Desert Hills (Utah) 29, Legacy 14 — At St. George, Utah, DeMichael Walker had a 49-yard touchdown run and Romello Pritchett returned a blocked punt 35 yards, but the Longhorns (0-1) fell to defending Utah 3A state champion Desert Hills (3-0).

■ Spring Mountain 64, Quest Academy 0 — At Spring Mountain, the Golden Eagles (1-1) returned three kicks and an interception for touchdowns, recorded four safeties on their way to a rout of the Knights (0-1).

■ Sandy Valley 46, Beaver Dam 12 — At Littlefield, Ariz., Lane Eastham passed for a touchdown, rushed for three touchdowns and had an interception to lead the Sidewinders (2-0).