Love’s run ignites Gators’ win

Green Valley's Aaron Love took the field Friday night hoping to assert himself in a key rivalry game.

After the first play, the senior running back was well on his way to achieving that goal.

Love opened with a 65-yard touchdown sprint and finished with 269 yards on 19 carries to help the Gators jump ahead early and hold on for a 36-33 home win over Basic in the Southeast League opener for both teams.

"I just made my cut and I was off to the races," Love said of his first carry, which gave Green Valley a 7-0 lead only 17 seconds into the game. "I'm really proud of my guys. We've been preparing for this game all summer."

After the Wolves (1-2, 0-1 Southeast) ended their first possession with a botched punt, Green Valley (2-1, 1-0) took advantage of good field position by scoring on a 2-yard keeper by Jacob Olim to go ahead 14-0.

Though the Gators appeared on their way to a blowout, coach Brian Castro said he knew better.

"We just had momentum at that point," Castro said. "We knew they were going to make a run."

Basic fought back with a 99-yard drive, cutting the deficit to 14-6 when Eddie Vega connected with Darien Spencer on a 54-yard touchdown pass early in the second quarter.

But Love answered two plays later with an 80-yard TD run, and the Gators tacked on two more points late in the half when Basic botched another punt for a safety that made it 23-6. Vega scored on an 18-yard keeper just before halftime to cut the Wolves' deficit to 23-13.

Though Olim connected with Barry Cruvant for a TD pass early in the third quarter to extend the Gators' lead, Basic battled back with another scoring run by Vega and a 93-yard TD pass from running back Antrae Johnson to Devonte Boyd to pull within 30-27.

Vega found the end zone again early in the fourth, scoring on a 23-yard run that gave the Wolves their only lead at 33-30.

But a key 43-yard run by Love set up the Gators' final score.

"He's a guy we knew we had to get the ball to," Castro said. "He did a heck of a job tonight."

Olim capped Green Valley's winning drive with a 3-yard TD run that made it 36-33 with 7:55 to play.

Love said the victory was important for two reasons.

"It's great to start conference with a win," he said. "That gives us momentum. But it all comes down to the rivalry we have with Basic."

Olim completed 12 of 24 passes for 140 yards to help the Gators.

Vega completed 22 of 41 passes for 315 yards to lead Basic. Boyd caught nine of those passes for 200 yards, and Spencer added 155 yards on 11 receptions.

■ Bishop Gorman 69, Clark 7 -- At Gorman, the top-ranked Gaels (4-1, 3-0 Southwest League) scored on seven of their first eight plays from scrimmage and a 95-yard kickoff return to lead 55-7 early in the second quarter, coasting past the Chargers (1-2, 1-2).

Gorman was not tackled until less than a minute remained in the first quarter. Before that came six one-play TD possessions: an 80-yard pass from Jarrett Solomon to Ryan Smith, a 20-yard run by Shaquille Powell, a 6-yard catch by Jamir Tillman, a 50-yard run by Nathan Starks, a 95-yard kickoff return by Justin Sweet and a 91-yard catch by Starks.

Solomon compiled 177 yards passing in limited play and Powell rushed for 105 yards.

Clark's lone bright spot was an 80-yard touchdown run by Deyon McKinney in the first quarter.

-- Neil Grepke

■ Arbor View 56, Mojave 12 -- At Arbor View, Henry Hoffend completed his first six passes for 169 yards and two touchdowns as the third-ranked Aggies (3-1, 2-1 Northwest) rolled over the Rattlers (0-3, 0-3).

Hoffend threw a 35-yard TD pass to Roderick Eason and a 31-yarder to Steve Burns.

Donnie Gaskin rushed for 142 yards on 14 carries and two scores to lead a stout Aggies ground attack.

Mojave quarterback Trevonte Veal passed for 166 yards, including a 61-yard touchdown to D'adrian Green. Veal also scored on a 1-yard plunge in the fourth quarter.

-- Brian Danise

■ Las Vegas 58, Eldorado 13 -- At Eldorado, junior Vince Castro scored on runs of 11 and 3 yards and threw a 39-yard TD pass to Andrew Moreland, carrying the fourth-ranked Wildcats (3-0, 1-0 Northeast) past the Sundevils (1-2, 0-1).

Farrell Victor rushed for touchdowns of 50 and 51 yards in the first half and he added another TD on an 80-yard kickoff return. Moreland scored on an 18-yard return of a blocked punt.

Eldorado's Justin Brown rushed for 83 yards, including a 59-yard touchdown.

-- Nolan Lister

■ Foothill 10, Coronado 6 -- At Coronado, Dylan Freiling intercepted Coronado's Derrick Keller at the Falcons 16-yard line with less than three minutes to play, and No. 5 Foothill (4-0, 1-0 Southeast) slipped past the Cougars (2-1, 0-1).

Freiling picked off the pass intended for Tyler Proctor and the Falcons then ran out the final 2:40.

After blocking a field-goal attempt, Foothill scored in the first quarter on Drew Doxtator's 35-yard pass to Amod Turner. Vincent Franzeo's 21-yard field goal to end the half made it 10-0.

The Cougars scored on the first play of the fourth quarter on Keller's 50-yard pass to Christopher Johnson.

Doxtator went 9 of 20 for 119 yards.

-- Sam Leeper

■ Del Sol 28, Silverado 24 -- At Silverado, Chris Marshall scored on runs of 43, 5 and 1 yards and made an interception that set up the go-ahead score, as the sixth-ranked Dragons (3-0, 1-0 Southeast) rallied from a 21-7 halftime deficit to beat the Skyhawks (1-2, 0-1).

With the game tied at 21 in the third quarter, Marshall's interception gave Del Sol possession, and the Dragons converted with a 9-yard TD pass from Nathan Kirschbaum to Raheem Jones.

Silverado answered with a 15-play, 76-yard drive, but settled for a 20-yard field goal by Victor Coleman. The Skyhawks' final possession ended with an interception by Jones with 1:05 to play.

Del Sol overcame a terrific game by Silverado's Izaiah Thurmon, who rushed for 180 yards and three touchdowns.

Marshall, who rushed for 89 yards on 13 carries, rallied Del Sol with two touchdowns in the third quarter.

-- Tim Guesman

■ Liberty 57, Spring Valley 0 -- At Spring Valley, Dustin Kaanaana scored on a 20-yard interception return on the first play, and the seventh-ranked Patriots (2-1) breezed past the Grizzlies (1-2).

Liberty led 20-0 with less than five minutes left in the quarter, converting two more turnovers, and Samuel Monterde's second-quarter interception led to a 9-yard TD pass from Kai Nacua to Brandon Moreno.

Nacua also threw TD passes of 62 yards to Jared Tuilagi and 41 to Shamar Carroll, and finished with 223 yards on 11 of 17. Jordan Kapeli added a 25-yard touchdown on a fumble return, and Niko Kapeli rushed for 102 yards.

-- Jason Watkins

■ Cheyenne 62, Virgin Valley 24 -- At Cheyenne, junior running back Myloe Lewis rushed for 280 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries to lead the eighth-ranked Desert Shields (3-0) past the Bulldogs (3-1).

Senior Tyler Spight ran for 125 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries, and senior Kenneth Counts carried 11 times for 100 yards and two scores.

Virgin Valley's Umberto Urias completed 16 of 31 passes for 279 yards and two touchdowns.

-- Kevin Porter

■ Cimarron-Memorial 49, Faith Lutheran 18 -- At Faith Lutheran, Demaryae Williams ran for 324 yards and three touchdowns on 27 carries to propel the 10th-ranked Spartans (3-1, 2-1 Northwest) to a rout of the Crusaders (1-2, 1-2).

Cimarron-Memorial scored on seven of eight offensive possessions, with six rushing touchdowns. Williams scored on runs of 61, 11 and 5 yards. His 40-yard burst set up a 1-yard keeper TD by Gerard Martinez, who also had a 2-yard TD and a 20-yard scoring pass to Justin Davis.

Cimarron's Demarlo Lewis rushed for 85 yards on seven carries, with a 59-yard touchdown.

For Faith Lutheran, Gino DeGeorge threw a 16-yard TD pass to Chris Mays on fourth-and-goal and a 43-yarder to Sean Bishel on the game's final play. Brad Pearson returned the opening kickoff of the second half 90 yards for a touchdown.

Mays finished with 101 yards receiving.

-- Brennan Karle

■ Desert Oasis 42, Western 7 -- At Desert Oasis, Trevon Barnes returned the opening kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, igniting the Diamondbacks (1-2, 1-1 Southwest) to a blowout of the Warriors (0-3, 0-3).

Brandon Andrews rushed for 159 yards, including touchdowns of 5, 8 and 14 yards. Herman Smith threw for 80 yards, including an 11-yard touchdown to Marvin Duty, who had 76 yards receiving.

Western's Alex Allister scored on an 80-yard interception return.

-- Adam Eslinger

■ Valley 35, Rancho 34-- At Valley, Vikings quarterback Anthony Sanders threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Erik Edmond on fourth-and-goal, and Dillard Davis kicked the extra point to in the fifth overtime to lift Valley (1-2, 1-0 Northeast) to a dramatic win over the Rams (0-3, 0-1).

The game was tied 8-8 after regulation, and each team scored four touchdowns in overtime.

-- Steve Spigelmyer

■ Legacy 43, Shadow Ridge 3 -- At Shadow Ridge, D'Andre Hughes ran for a career-high 270 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Longhorns (2-1, 2-1 Northwest) past the Mustangs (0-3, 0-2).

Hughes scored on runs of 45 and 80 yards in the second quarter and 54 in the fourth.

Damonte Bolden returned Mason Davis' blocked punt 16 yards for a touchdown to give Legacy a 21-0 lead at the half. Elijah Turner hit Alonzo Fuller for a 57-yard TD in the third quarter. Shamarlo Tucker added a 29-yard TD run.

James Grigsby kicked a 27-yard field goal for Shadow Ridge with 5:32 left, and J Henderson passed for 192 yards.

-- Alan Abair

■ Sierra Vista 36, Pahrump Valley 35 -- At Sierra Vista, the Mountain Lions (1-2, 1-1 Southwest) squeaked out their first win, stopping Pahrump Valley's 2-point conversion try with 5 seconds to play.

Sierra Vista had two big special teams touchdowns, a 62-yard punt return by Matt Murphy and a 72-yard kickoff return by Justin Green.

Green rushed for 95 yards on 18 carries, including a 1-yard touchdown.

-- Mick Akers

■ Chaparral 20, Sunrise Mountain 14 -- At Sunrise Mountain, junior Antonio Thomas scored his third second-half touchdown on a 75-yard run in the final two minutes as the Cowboys (1-2, 1-0 Northeast) rallied from a 14-0 deficit to beat the Miners (0-3, 0-1).

Thomas finished with 213 yards on 21 carries. He also scored on runs of 20 and 8 yards and added a tying 2-point conversion run following the second TD.

Sunrise Mountain forced three turnovers in the first half and scored on a 15-yard pass from Jovon Perry to Charles Manning. Perry finished with 105 yards rushing and 58 passing.

The Miners made it 14-0 in the third quarter on a 28-yard run by Jacari Young, who had 52 yards on the ground. Demetrius Stegall led Sunrise Mountain with 95 yards on 16 carries.

-- Zac Alexander

■ Agassi Prep 6, Needles (Calif.) 0 -- At Rancho, Terrell Kemp threw an 18-yard touchdown to Kendrick Glinton with 6:14 to play, lifting the Stars (1-2) over the Mustangs (0-3) in a 2A Southern opener.

Needles lost a fumble at its own 36-yard line with 6:28 left and Agassi Prep needed only two plays -- and a Needles personal foul -- to get in the end zone.

Glinton caught three passes for 57 yards, helping Agassi Prep beat Needles for the first time since rising to the 11-man level in 2008. Kemp rushed for 44 yards on 20 carries, and Kobe Williams ran for 21 yards and intercepted a pass.

Austin Baldwin rushed for 131 yards on 24 carries for Needles, which was shut out for the second game in a row.

-- Tristan Aird

■ The Meadows 52, Laughlin 6 -- At Laughlin, Garrett Gosse completed 10 of 18 passes for 193 yards and four touchdowns as the Mustangs routed the Cougars in the teams' Class 2A Southern League opener.

Chase Marrs ran for two TDs for The Meadows (2-1, 1-0 2A Southern), and Taylor Beck had 84 yards receiving, including a touchdown. Max Newman and Richard Lee also caught scoring passes, and Torrey Mayes returned a fumble 50 yards for a TD.

Corey Beggs scored for Laughlin (2-1, 0-1) on a 3-yard run.

■ Lincoln County 28, Calvary Chapel 6 -- At Panaca, Preston Avery rushed for 114 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries as the Lynx (1-2) defeated the Lions (2-1) in a 2A Southern opener.

Nick Hurst ran for 70 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries and Derek Cheeney added 60 yards on 10 rushes.

A.J. Davis scored on a 12-yard run in the first quarter for Calvary Chapel.

■ Sandy Valley 38, Victor Valley Christian (Calif.) 22 -- At Victorville, Calif., Jeremy Hall scored three touchdowns, including a 75-yard fumble return, to lead the Sidewinders (1-1) past the Royals (0-2).

Tanner Johnson returned an interception for a touchdown for Sandy Valley, which also got rushing TDs by Randal Spencer and Lane Eastham.

■ Pahranagat Valley 68, Indian Springs 6 -- At Alamo, Tyler Higbee had 120 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns to carry the Panthers (4-0, 1-0) over the Thunderbirds (2-1, 0-1) in the teams' Class 1A Southern League opener.

Higbee rushed for 57 yards and a touchdown and had 63 yards on two TD catches. Jeremy Minick ran for two TDs, and Austin Poulsen threw for 172 yards and three touchdowns.