Gaels survive test by Legacy

With his team trailing 6-3 late in the third quarter, Bishop Gorman defensive end Justin Chaisson knew it was time to make something happen.

The senior co-captain forced and recovered a momentum-turning fumble, and the host Gaels went on to beat Legacy 17-6 in the Sunset Region quarterfinals Friday night.

"They were running an option and I hit the quarterback right as he was pitching it," Chaisson said. "The ball slipped out, and it was a fumble for anyone to get."

Several players made contact with the ball before Chaisson rejoined the scrum.

"I ran as fast as I could and I ripped it out of a Legacy player's hands," he said. "That needed to happen for us. I think it affected the momentum. That's when we started putting points on the board."

Gorman took possession at Legacy's 36-yard line, and the Gaels scored six plays later on Jordan Welte's 2-yard plunge for a 10-6 lead early in the fourth quarter. Gorman made it 17-6 minutes later after a blocked punt led to a 22-yard Joe Huber touchdown run.

The Gaels (11-1) advanced to the Sunset semifinals against visiting Cheyenne at 7 p.m. Friday.

Gorman coach Bob Altshuler said he was proud of his players' performance late.

"Nobody wants to be behind," he said. "You've just got to keep your composure."

The Gaels took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter on Colin Ditsworth's 27-yard field goal. That lead held up through halftime, but not much longer as Legacy's Dontrell Hall returned the second-half kickoff 74 yards to set up an 8-yard TD run by Deshae Edwards.

Welte carried for 96 yards on 19 carries to lead Gorman. Edwards posted 76 yards on 17 carries for Legacy (7-4).

• Palo Verde 21, Sierra Vista 7 -- At Palo Verde, Chaz Thomas ran for 153 yards and two fourth-quarter TDs, and the Panthers made three interceptions to beat the Mountain Lions in the Sunset Region.

Palo Verde (11-0) will host Cimarron-Memorial (7-4) in the Sunset semis at 7 p.m. Friday.

Thomas ran in from 2 and 5 yards in the fourth quarter, giving Palo Verde a 21-0 lead.

Sierra Vista's Akil Sharp scored on a 1-yard run with a minute left.

Palo Verde scored in the first quarter on a 43-yard pass from Kelly Zuroski to Sidney Hodge. Two other drives by the Mountain Lions (5-6) ended with interceptions by Alex Bonczyk and Torin Harris.

-- Adam Berchin

• Cheyenne 32, Bonanza 7 -- At Cheyenne, Marcus Sullivan rushed for 160 yards, including touchdowns of 65 and 35 yards in the fourth quarter, and the Desert Shields scored 26 points in the second half to beat the Bengals in the Sunset Region.

Cheyenne (10-1) advanced to play at Bishop Gorman (11-0) at 7 p.m. Friday.

The Desert Shields led 6-0 at halftime on Jordan Butler's 5-yard run and a couple of key defensive stops. Bonanza (6-5) failed to score on a 14-play drive in the first quarter when Damien Proby sacked Bengals quarterback Sterling Sprau on fourth-and-goal at the Cheyenne 7-yard line. Bonanza also came up empty on a 12-play drive in the second quarter.

Cheyenne made it a runaway in the second half. Terrence Brison, who rushed for 71 yards, scored on a 47-yard run midway through the third quarter. Sullivan's 65-yard run came on the Desert Shields' first play of the fourth quarter, and Brison's 2-point conversion run made it 20-0.

Bonanza broke the shutout with a 48-yard pass from Sprau to Aaron Simon with 7:57 to play. Sullivan answered with his second TD run, and Cheyenne's Greg Lawson returned a fumble 29 yards for a touchdown.

-- Brennan Karle

• Las Vegas 52, Foothill 20 -- At Las Vegas, Emir Lopez passed for five touchdowns and rushed for another as the Wildcats defeated the Falcons in the Sunrise Region.

Las Vegas (10-1) will host Green Valley (8-3) in the regional semifinals at 7 p.m. Friday. Foothill finished 4-7.

The Falcons scored first on Connor Afoa's 69-yard punt return, but Las Vegas sped to a 28-14 halftime lead, aided by freshman Barry Williams' 53-yard interception return of a pass by Aaron Dupin.

On the next play, Lopez tossed a shovel pass to Reggie Bullock, who broke three tackles on his way to the end zone.

Foothill had 177 total yards before the Dupin interception, but only 73 afterward.

Lopez completed 15 of 22 passes for 280 yards. He connected with Bullock and Aaron Franklin for two touchdowns apiece and Saeveon Butler for the other. Lopez also had a 29-yard scoring run.

Cameron Rogers led the Wildcats with 78 yards on six carries and scored on a 4-yard run. Las Vegas outgained the Falcons, 474-250.

-- Sam Leeper

• Basic 34, Valley 21 -- At Basic, the Wolves scored the final 27 points and Anthany Lessier was a defensive force, leading Basic past the Vikings in the Sunrise Region.

Robby Faiman rushed for 110 yards and threw for 170 and a touchdown to lead Basic (8-3) into the regional semifinals against visiting Del Sol (9-2) at 7 p.m. Friday.

Martell Walker had two 1-yard touchdown runs for the Wolves. His score with 9:26 left in the third quarter gave Basic its first lead, 28-21.

Valley quarterback Kerwynn Williams ran 56 yards for a touchdown and passed for TDs of 54 and 29 yards, giving the Vikings a 21-7 lead early in the second quarter.

The Wolves' comeback began when Faiman hit Justin Burdno for a 20-yard touchdown late in the quarter, then Lessier got involved.

After Williams drove Valley into Basic territory, Lessier stepped in front of a Williams pass at the Basic 25 and returned the interception 75 yards for a tying TD.

Lessier picked off a Williams pass at the Valley 25 early in the fourth quarter to set up Walker's go-ahead score. Lessier iced the game on Basic's ensuing possession, scoring on a 19-yard run.

Williams ran for 170 yards and passed for 95 for the Vikings (5-6).

-- Tim Guesman

• Green Valley 32, Desert Pines 12 -- At Green Valley, the Gators raced to a 32-0 halftime lead and held off the Jaguars in the Sunrise Region.

After its first playoff victory in 11 years, Green Valley (8-3) will play at Las Vegas (10-1) in the regional semifinals at 7 p.m. Friday.

The Gators scored three touchdowns in the second quarter, two on passes from Nick Libonati to Skyler Holloway of 27 and 20 yards.

In the first quarter, Green Valley scored on a 10-yard run by Quincy Bagsby and a 33-yard field goal by Nolan Kohorst. Dallas Halasz returned a fumble 30 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.

Desert Pines (4-6), the Northeast League's No. 3 seed, lost quarterback Dalton Leilua to an ankle sprain late in the first quarter.

-- Stu Mandelbaum