Pima outlasts Tonopah Valley to earn trip back to 2A State Championship
By Jon Johnson
MESA – The No. 3 Pima Roughriders defense held high-powered Tonopah Valley’s offense scoreless in the second half to earn their third consecutive trip to the 2A State Conference Championship game with a 40-34 victory in the semifinal at Westwood High School in Mesa on Saturday.
Pima (12-1) will face No. 12 Scottsdale Christian (9-4) in the 2A State Championship game on Saturday, Nov. 30, at Mountain Ridge High School at 22800 N. 76th Ave. in Glendale, starting at 2 p.m. It will be a rebound game, but which team will it be for? Pima fell to Scottsdale Christian 24-41 in last year’s championship game – SCA’s first, but defeated the Eagles in the regular season this year on Oct. 11, 20-17, after Pima scored a 25-yard TD in the waning seconds.
Scottsdale Christian made it to the final by knocking off No. 1 San Tan Charter, 34-21, in the semifinal. Its only losses this year have been to Tonopah Valley, San Tan Charter, Pima, and 3A Valley Christian.
In the early game, The Phoenix came out firing hot on its first possession with five wideouts and an empty backfield. They marched right downfield and scored a 32-yard TD on a pass from Sir-izzik Sanchez Caldwell to Konner Bruner. The Phoenix then hit a 2-point conversion pass to Thomas Foilefutu, and Tonopah was up 8-0 early with 9:58 left in the first quarter.
A holding call nullified Jeremiah Martinez’s first-down run, and Pima was forced to punt on its first possession. Martinez avoided disaster by snaring a high snap and getting the punt away clean.
The Phoenix punted on their second possession, and Pima started with the ball nearly at mid-field. However, the Riders soon found themselves facing a 4th and 6, and Grimes dropped back and threw one up just as he was hit. Preston Russell had his hands on it but couldn’t bring it in. However, he was interfered with, and Pima got the first down on the penalty.
The Roughriders finished the drive at the start of the second quarter with a 3-yard TD dive by Martinez, and Rhiley Good added the extra point to drop Tonopah’s lead to 8-7 with 11:57 left in the second quarter.
The Phoenix came right back on their next possession, and Caldwell ran it in on 1st and goal from the 6. The 2-point conversion was stopped short, however, and Tonopah Valley was up 14-7 with 10:45 left in the first half.
On its next possession, Pima faced a 4th ad 4 from The Phoenix’s 45. Grimes dropped back, looking for an open man, but was pressured into throwing an incomplete pass to turn the ball over.
Tonopah then capitalized on the turnover with a tough catch and run by Foilefutu for an 11-yard TD, putting the Phoenix up 20-7 with about 7 minutes to play in the half. All was not well in Pimaville.
A big throw from Cedrick Grimes to Jaxon McBiles set the Riders up in the Red Zone at the 16, and a pass interference call negated an INT and gave Pima a first down at the 7. Two plays later, Grimes attempted to hit a quick slant, but this time, the interception in the end zone stood, and the Phoenix took the ball back with just over 5 minutes left in the half.
The Riders’ defense forced a 3-and-out, however, and Pima had one more shot before halftime after a short punt gave them the ball at Tonopah’s 26-yard line. And on the very next play Grimes hit Russell over the middle for the 26-yard TD, and after an unsuccessful 2-point attempt, Pima had clawed back to 13-20.
Then it was the defense’s turn to shine, and on a tipped pass, Keegan Corona brought it in for the INT at The Phoenix’s 32. Pima struck fast on its first play back on offense as Grimes hit Wade Peterson, who took it to the 16.
Martinez then got the handoff, and it appeared he would be stopped at the line of scrimmage, but instead, he bowled over a defender and dragged several others numerous yards to give Pima a first and goal at the 5. Martinez took it in on the next play to make it 19-20.
However, Tonopah came right back with an 82-yard pass to Najee Cooper, who bobbled and then raced his way into the end zone. The 2-point conversion was good, and with just over a minute to go in the first half, Tonopah had built a two-possession lead, 28-19, over Pima.
The Roughriders got the ball to start the second half, but the drive ended when Grimes was hit on a scramble. His fumble was recovered by Angel Acosta of Tonopah Valley at their own 42.
Pima’s defense answered the call and stopped Tonopah on 4th down to turn it over with 8:16 left in the third, but Pima mishandled the ball on their very next play and gave it right back.
Once again, the defense stepped up; this time, it was Brock Haws who had a huge sack late in the third to give Tonopah a 4th and 25 and force a punt. And just like last week’s game, the punter didn’t feel he could kick it away cleanly and attempted to run for the first down, only to turn it over on downs instead.
Pima capitalized on the turnover with a Martinez TD plunge, and after a Good extra point, Pima was down 26-28.
The Phoenix would answer right back, however, as Foilefutu broke a couple of tackles and took the ensuing kickoff back 82 yards to push The Phoenix’s lead back up to 34-26 with 9:54 left in the game. After kicking onside kicks all day, the ball bounces for Tonopah, and The Phoenix nab a possession to take the ball back at Pima’s 46.
But with just over 8 minutes to play, Tonopah faced a 4th and 6 from the 42. Caldwell threw it up for his receiver, but Keegan Corona came down with it for Pima on his own 15 to end the threat.
Pima came right back with Martinez, who had a huge run to open it up for the Roughriders. Martinez then took it in 29 yards on a tough run for the score. The Riders then gave it right back to Martinez, who burst into the end zone on the 2-point attempt to tie the game at 34-34 with 6:44 left to play.
And then, just like last week, the Riders had a huge special teams play as Adam Bryce appeared to recover the kickoff at The Phoenix’s 22 after the ball hung along the sideline. However, after a discussion, the officials said Bryce was out of bounds when he possessed the ball and gave it back to Tonopah.
However, Tonopah’s quarterback Caldwell was subsequently injured on a scramble, and Konner Bruner came in to spell him. On his second play, Bruner threw into coverage, and Cedrick Grimes picked it off for Pima at the 33. Grimes then lateraled the ball to Rooster Alder as he was being tackled, and Alder took it back to the 17 to give Pima the ball in the Red Zone, looking to take the lead with 6:08 left to play.
After a couple of runs by Martinez and Joe Palmer, Pima knocked on the door with a first-and-goal from the 3, and Martinez finished it off to take the lead 40-34. The ensuing 2-point attempt was not successful, but Pima had its first lead with 4:38 left in the game.
The defense then sealed it for Pima as Brock Haws sacked Caldwell to give Tonopah a 4th and 16. A long pass from Caldwell fell incomplete, and Pima took the ball back with just 2:54 left on the clock. Haws was wearing teammate Eli Rogers’ jersey after having ripped his earlier.
Pima looked to put the ball away on offense, but Grimes’ pass on 4th and 5 was dropped, and Tonopah had one more shot with 1:50 left.
But that also meant Pima’s defense had one more shot to knock them back. On 4th and 15, with 45 seconds to play, Caldwell’s pass was completed, but the receiver was tackled short. Pima then took over on downs to seal the deal and send the Riders back to the 2A State Championship game with the 40-34 victory.
