Photo: 79 Blake Mcglory puts pressure on the Northwest Christian quarterback last week
#7 Vista Grande Spartans (3-0) at #10 Prescott Badgers (2-1), Bill Shepard Field, 7 pm
The Spartans roll into town from Casa Grande looking to make it two in a row over the Badgers. Last season Prescott lost down south 41-19, and would like nothing more than to even the score.
Last week the Badgers pulled off a mild upset with an exciting 42-41 win at Northwest Christian. Vista Grande took a long road trip and beat St. Joseph’s 26-24 of Santa Maria, California, a school I played against once upon a time.
Vista Grande quarterback Brenden Hunt runs the offense. The senior QB can run, 171 yards, or throw the ball, 304 yards with 3 touchdowns and zero interceptions, and completes nearly 60% of his passes.
Fernando Moya is the workhorse in the backfield averaging 156 yards per game and has 469 yards on the season with 4 touchdowns. Thomas Ortega Jr. and Eltorna Gant have a combined 13 catches for 176 yards and each with a touchdown.
The Badgers offense flexed its muscles again after being stymied at Thunderbird. Quarterback Uriah Tenette has thrown for 571 yards and six touchdowns with no interceptions. Adam Lloyd leads the ground game with 188 yards, followed by Tenette, Isaac Briseno, and Jacob Chamberlain. Josiah Peoples has taken four of his six receptions for touchdowns with an astonishing 43 yard average per catch. Johann Gundermann has eight receptions, two for touchdowns and averages 24 yards per catch. Cooper Kasun and Brody Hanna lead the team in tackles averaging over seven per game. Gundermann is perfect with his kicks, converting all 16 extra point attempts.
This is the third straight week that the Badgers have played an undefeated team, and has all the makings of another exciting and competitive contest. The edge goes to Prescott for two reasons, one they are at home, and two they would like nothing better than to rid themselves of the bad taste that has lingered for a year that they got in Casa Grande last year. Both teams take care of the ball so a big turnover could prove to be the decider.
#16 Bradshaw Mountain Bears (1-2) at St. Mary’s Knights (2-1), Phoenix College, 7 pm
The Bears were happy to come home last week and came away with a 24-0 win over Moon Valley. Tonight they are back on the road for the third time in four weeks against St. Mary’s. Despite the better record, the Knights sit much lower in the rankings at 28, with their wins coming over Carl Hayden 39-0, and North 43-14. Their lone setback was at Seton Catholic 22-0. St. Mary’s does averge 27 points a game to the Bears 19.
St. Mary’s is a run-oriented team averaging over 200 yards per game. The Knights have three ball carriers they rely on in Branson Brown 210 yards, Angel Olvera 137 yards, Josiah Atkinson 133 yards, and Bobby Lewis who has four of the combined 11 touchdowns. Their quarterbacks have only thrown eight passes with no touchdowns and three interceptions.
Kylin Jackson and Dylyn Garrett now each have over a 100 yards rushing on the season. Quarterback Michael Sanford upped his stats last week and now has completed 52% of his passes for 234 yards, three TDs, and two interceptions. Runnung back Brayden Munday returned to the lineup last week versus Moon Valley.
This should be a quick game as both teams like to grind it out on the ground. The Bears are a lock to throw the ball more. Look for Bradshaw Mountain to continue to build on their performance last week and even their season record at (2-2).
MAXPREPS DIVISION 4A TOP 20
1 Thunderbird 3-0
2 Eastmark 2-1
3 Yuma Catholic 3-0
4 Snowflake 3-0
5 Mica Mountain 3-0
6 Canyon Del Oro 2-1
7 Vista Grande 3-0
8 AZ College Prep 2-1
9 Arcadia 3-0
10 Prescott 2-1
11 Northwest Christian 2-1
12 Coconino 1-1
13 Poston Butte 1-2
14 Buckeye 2-1
15 Walden Grove 0-2
16 Bradshaw Mountain 1-2
17 Estrella Foothills 2-1
18 Peoria 1-2
19 Seton Catholic 2-1
20 Combs 3-0
