Roundup: Defensive ends key Green Valley win

Green Valley defensive ends Mitch Jacobs and Zane Maningo went to three camps in Colorado this summer, giving them extra time to work on their chemistry.

Now they’re back in Nevada and quarterbacks should be worried.

The two terrorized Centennial at home Friday, combining for 4½ of the Gators’ six sacks in a 20-14 win. Green Valley’s defensive effort started with their play up front as they made it hard for the Bulldogs’ offensive to function.

“Those guys came to play tonight and they did a really good job,” Green Valley coach Brian Castro said. “Those guys coming in and putting a great effort in set the tone for us. It actually freed up some guys in the middle to make some plays.”

Jacobs, who had three sacks, and Maningo, who had 1½ sacks and a fumble recovery, helped the Gators (2-0) turn away plenty of Centennial threats. Green Valley increased its 13-7 halftime lead to 20-7 after three quarters largely because its defense turned the Bulldogs (1-1) over on downs twice in goal-to-go situations.

Centennial was able to cut into its deficit with junior running back Jordan Smith’s 60-yard rushing touchdown with 6:59 left to go in the game, but Maningo shut things down from there. The junior had a tackle for loss on fourth down on the Bulldogs’ second-to-last drive and had half a sack on their last series to seal the win.

“We sort of let it up at the end but we got it all together,” Jacobs said.

Green Valley was led offensively by junior running back Noah Hawthorne, who finished with 118 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. He also broke off a 13-yard run on third down late in the fourth quarter that allowed the Gators to get into the victory formation.

“He’s solid,” Castro said. “He doesn’t look like a burner but he’s got a little bit of speed and can rumble downhill.”

Hawthorne’s runs and the defense’s stifling play was enough to prevent Centennial, which beat Sierra Vista 32-26 in its first game, from earning a second straight upset. Green Valley forced the Bulldogs into 13 negative plays and outgained them 259-229.

“I’m super proud of our defense for the way that they played,” Castro said. “They had their back against the wall but those guys got some four-and-outs down in our territory and got the ball back for our offense. I couldn’t be more proud of those guys.”

Arbor View 17, Valencia (Calif.) 14 — At Valencia, California, Easton Jones kicked a 22-yard field goal with 2:40 to play to give the Aggies the win over the Vikings.

The third-ranked Aggies had tied the game on a 44-yard TD run by Kyle Graham with 11:11 to play. Graham had 31 carries for 189 yards.

Justin Hausner had a 2-yard touchdown run in the first quarter to give Arbor View (2-0) an early lead.

But Valencia (0-1)scored the next two touchdowns, taking the lead on a 70-yard scoring strike from Jake Santos to Davis Cop with 11:38 to go in the third quarter.

J. J. Tuinei had 13 tackles and forced a fumble to set up Jones’ winning kick. Niles Scafati-Boyce intercepted two passes for the Aggies.

Liberty 22, Saguaro (Ariz.) 12 — At Scottsdale, Arizona, Defensive back Austin Fiaseu blocked a punt in the first quarter and his brother, Zyrus, returned it 20 yards for a touchdown to key the Patriots in a win over the Sabercats.

Ezra Tomhoon capped a 21-play drive with a rushing touchdown in the second quarter and the Patriots shut out the Sabercats in the second half.

Eldorado 44, Mission Bay (Calif.) 15 — At San Diego, California, Jalen Malone threw three touchdown passes and rushed for two more scores to help the Sundevils score an impressive road victory.

Michael Perez rushed for 169 yards on 16 carries for Eldorado (1-0). Malone rushed for 56 yards on nine carries. Both TD passes went to Guillermo Hernandez.

Mission Bay fell to 1-1.

Moapa Valley 41, Democracy Prep 6 — At Overton, Trystin Lehman rushed for a pair of touchdowns to lead the Pirates over the Blue Knights.

Lehman had TD runs of 21 and 6 yards. He finished with 12 carries for 95 yards. Braeden St. John rushed for 108 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.

The Pirates (1-1), ranked No. 2 in Class 3A, also had a pair of defensive touchdowns, as Derek Reese returned an interception 24 yards for a touchdown, and Coby Longman had a 3-yard fumble return for a score.

Vanell Meeks had a 35-yard touchdown run for the Blue Knights (1-1), ranked No. 5 in 3A.

Virgin Valley 26, Pahrump Valley 24 — At Pahrump, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 14-0 lead after one quarter and held off the Trojans.

Nico Velazquez rushed for 148 yards and three touchdowns to lead Pahrump.

Lincoln County 30, Battle Mountain 14 — At Panaca, Dylan Robinson caught a pair of touchdown passes to lead the Lynx over the Longhorns.

Robinson had four catches for 163 yards. He had TD receptions of 38 and 81 yards from Alex Vincent.

Noah Smith ran for 144 yards on 24 carries. He also returned an interception 15 yards for a touchdown to open the scoring and finished with 10 tackles and a sack.

Vincent completed 4 of 5 passes for 174 yards, and Dean Ottley had four sacks for Lincoln County (1-0).

Phoenix Christian (Ariz.) 42, Needles 22 — At Flagstaff, Arizona, the Cougars scored the final 21 points of the second quarter en route to the win over the Mustangs.

After surrendering a touchdown early in the first quarter on an interception return, the Mustangs rebounded to take an 8-7 lead early in the second quarter before the Cougars rattled off 21 points to take a 28-8 halftime lead.

Needles (1-1) returned the second half kickoff for a touchdown to cut the gap to 28-14, but Phoenix Christian (1-0) answered with a pair of rushing TDs in the final four minutes of the third quarter to put the game away.

Foothill 49, Galena 0 — At Reno, the Falcons rolled past the Grizzlies.

Laughlin 46, GV Christian 30 — At Laughlin, the Cougars defeated the Guardians.