Arizona HS football roundup Week 4: O'Connor pulls off upset, Sunnyslope wins thriller

O'Connor knocks of No. 8 Red Mountain

By Ben Stapley

Mesa Red Mountain, No. 8 in The Republic's latest 6A rankings, officially dedicated its field in the name of former coach Jim Jones during halftime Friday night.

It was one of the only highlights of the evening for the Mountain Lions, as Sandra Day O’Conner showed up from Northwest Phoenix to crash the party by way of a 28-14 upset victory.

O’Connor (2-0) used a pair of big passing plays and took advantage of several costly errors and turnovers by Red Mountain (1-1).

Players of the Game

O’Connor quarterback Cooper King connected with wideout Ben Currence for touchdowns of 41 and 44 yards, both in the first half.

Red Mountain had gained early momentum and 7-0 lead with a 92 yard scoring dash by Lenox Lawson on the first series from scrimmage.  Red Mountain couldn’t find an offensive rhythm the rest of the game. Its only other touchdown came on a double pass play. Wideout Ja'kobi Lane took a lateral pass before finding fellow receiver Taveon Sueing all alone for a 60-yard touchdown right before halftime.

King finished the game with 121 passing yards and the two scores.

Starting Quarterback Carter Crispin left the game for Red Mountain at halftime with a concussion.

Junior Kyle Heap led two promising drives, but O’Connor’s defense forced several sacks and recovered another fumble.

Plays of the Game

Rain made for a slippery football in the second half. The costliest play for Red Mountain cane midway through the fourth quarter. Red Mountain trailed 21-14 and was forced to punt from deep in its own territory. A bobbled snap led punter Carson Mauterer to inadvertently use his knee to gain his balance at the four yard line. The play was called dead and O’Connor running back Izik Durazo scored three players later, providing the game’s final points.

Quotes 

“You know we knew we probably came into this game with less individual talent, but our kids played with so much heart. It’s been that way the first two weeks. Tonight we were also able to make big plays at key moments. I’m just proud of our kids.” — O’Connor Head Coach Brian Cole.

Up next

O'Connor (2-0) visits Saguaro next Friday. Red Mountain (1-1) hosts Desert Ridge on Friday.

Sunnyslope downs Apollo in thriller

By Lucas Gordon

Friday night's game between Sunnyslope and Apollo came down to the final drives of the game.

Sunnyslope pulled out the victory by a score of 28-21 but they had a tough battle.

Heading into halftime, Sunnyslope was leading 14-7. As players were heading into their locker rooms it was announced the game was in a lightning delay. After a 45-minute delay, the second half started.

Following halftime Apollo gained the momentum. They involved their running game, including last week's Arizona Republic player of the week, Adam Mohammed more. To open the half the Hawks ran the ball seven straight times and eventually scored to tie the game at 14.

Key plays

The fourth quarter is where all the fireworks happened.  After pulling ahead to a 21-14 lead, Sunnyslope would catch a break after going three and out on their next drive. With four minutes left the punt following the drive, the Vikings would recover a muffed punt that put them at the Apollo 4-yard line.

The Vikings capitalized on the mistake and went up by 14.

On the ensuing drive, Apollo, on the back of Mohammed, went 70 yards. Mohammed began the drive with a 53-yard pass to put the team in the red zone. The drive ended with when he caught a 17-yard touchdown.

Apollo then recovered  an onside kick. Sunnyslope's defense forced a turnover on downs to end the game.

Key Players

For Sunnyslope the duo of quarterback Luke Moga and Dillon Dwiggins were unstoppable in the second half. Moga and Dwiggins connected on multiple 30-yard completions that would set up the Vikings for touchdown drives.

Sunnyslope running back, John Sing, finished the game with two rushing touchdowns and 103 yards.

Mohammed ended the game with 102 yards rushing, 59 yards passing and 43 yards receiving with three touchdowns.

Apollo quarterback Silus Chicharello three for 76 yards and two touchdowns.

Key Quotes

Sunnyslope's head coach Sam Jacobs wasn't worried about his team's focus during the weather delay.

"Last week we had an hour delay before we started so we're used to this. We just tried to keep them focused while staying relaxed."

Up next

Sunnyslope (2-0) hosts Higley next Friday. Apollo (1-1) visits Campo Verde.

Chandler uses big 2Q to rout Corona

By Anthony Perez

After routing San Diego’s Cathedral Catholic on the road last Friday, Chandler (2-0) was looking for an encore performance to impress their fans for its home opener. Consider it mission accomplished on Friday night after Chandler used a big second quarter following a weather delay to defeat Tempe Corona del Sol (1-1), 50-0, and stay undefeated on the young season.

Standout performers

It was a team effort across the board for Chandler, but senior quarterback Dylan Raiola stood out once again for his team on Friday night. The Ohio State commit followed up his 16-for-19 season-opening performance by starting the scoring for Chandler when he used his legs to easily get into the end zone on his team’s first possession of the game to give Chandler the early 7-0 lead.

During Chandler’s 28-point outburst in the second quarter Raiola was present again, this time passing to sophomore Kemon Jackson for seven yards and the score to help give the home team a comfortable 21-0 advantage just over four minutes into the second quarter.

Highlight of the game

With Chandler driving down the field in its opening possession of the game, Raiola dropped back to pass. With lots of time to make a decision he decided to use his legs to run into the end zone. Raiola’s composed play on that opening possession appeared to set the tone for the rest of the game and give Chandler momentum they wouldn’t relinquish.

Quote of the game

“[They] just come to work every day. Those kids prepare hard, our coaches work hard, and you see the final result of that. So, I’m happy with how we did things tonight.” — Chandler head coach Rick Garretson on his team’s second big win in a row

Up next

Corona del Sol travels to Gilbert to square off against Perry next Friday, while Chandler’s next test comes Thursday night at Scottsdale Notre Dame Prep.

Williams Field runs away from Chaparral

By Damian Adams

As rain poured, Gilbert Williams Field kept running up and down the field, eventually putting away visiting Scottsdale Chaparral, 49-28.

Williams Field's running game, led by Dylan Lee, was strong in the second quarter, scoring on two long touchdown runs of 80 and 81 yards, respectively, to take a 28-7 lead.

Chaparral was able to score a touchdown with a few minutes left in the half, closing the gap to 28-14. Chaparral had a golden opportunity to score a touchdown before halftime and Williams Field stopped Chaparral from getting into the endzone on the last play of the half.

Key Player

Williams Field's star running back, Dylan Lee, had five touchdown runs. Including runs of 58, 80, 81, and 94 yards.

Key Quote

"It wasn't really me," Dylan Lee said, when asked about his performance, "it was the guys up front blocking their butts off."

Up Next

Next week Williams Field will be back at home as they host Casteel and Chaparral will be back on the road at Mountain Pointe.

No. 2 Desert Mountain rolls voer Camelback

Desert Mountain rolls over Camelback

By Howard Schlossberg

Scottsdale Desert Mountain, The Republic’s No. 2-ranked 5A team, was dominant in a 50-8 win over Phoenix Camelback Friday in a game that saw a lengthy weather delay.

The Wolves rolled up 242 first-half yards and limited Camelback to 52 to build a 34-0 halftime lead. Quarterback Brady McDonough was 11 for 17 for 144 yards and four touchdowns in the half and rushing for 50 yards on three carries.

Desert Mountain’s defense kept pressure on Camelback quarterback Max Martin all night, and the Wolves’ Dylan Tapley and Thomas Nerheim came up with interceptions, Nerheim’s a pick 6.

The Wolves held the ball for first 6:17 of the 3rd quarter before Drew Tapley hit Jack Freeburg on a nice slant for a 42-0 lead.

Key quotes

Asked how good his team is, Desert Mountain coach Conrad Hamilton said: "I don't know.''

He continued, "I still don't know, how good we are," of The Republic's No 2-ranked team in 5A.

He noted Camelback was coming off an impressive win over a good Flagstaff team. "Camelback was a good opponent," he said.

He said it's important his team continues to improve:  "We're just not there right now."

Quarterback Brady McDonough of Desert Mountain added: "Coach keeps us ready. Lots of film. Lots of walk-throughs."

Up next

Desert Mountain (2-0) visits Mesa Mountain View next Thursday. Camelback (1-1) hosts Paradise Valley, also Thursday.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona high school football roundup Week 4