Eagles defeat Knights in 3A opening round
By Jon Johnson
PIMA – The No. 3 Pima Roughriders (9-0 conference, 10-1 overall) scored 23 unanswered points in less than 4 minutes of game time in the second half to pull away from the No. 14 St. Johns Redskins (5-3 conference, 6-5 overall) and end their season, 44-27, at Edd Hubbard Field on Friday night.
“We just gotta stay playing Roughrider football,” said Pima head coach Josh Wilkins. “I think when we’re on, there’s nobody that can beat us.”
Pima will next host No. 6 Bisbee, which defeated No. 11 Camp Verde, 33-20, in the opening round. The game will be at Edd Hubbard Field in Pima on Friday, Nov. 15, starting at 7 p.m.
It was a game of runs Friday night in Pima, where the game was held in unseasonably chilly temperatures. As the fans in the stands bundled up, so did the points, as Pima opened the game going up 21-0. St. Johns then put up 21 in a row to tie the game but fell back with 23 straight back from Pima in the third and fourth quarters to seal the deal.
Pima quarterback Cedrick Grimes went 16-23 for 222 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT for a quarterback rating of 96.6.
Grimes’ favorite target was Jaxon McBiles, who finished with 6 catches for 70 yards, while Wade Peterson had 3 catches for 109 yards and 1 TD. The Roughriders finished with 222 total yards receiving.
Pima ran all over St. Johns and finished with 282 yards. Jeremiah Martinez went for 192 yards on 22 rushes and scored 3 TDs, while Aiden Alder had 92 yards on 8 carries and 2 TDs.
Pima’s first score was set up by a standout defensive play by defensive end Preston Russell. Instead of rushing the quarterback from the line, Russell dropped back into zone coverage and intercepted a pass from St. Johns’ quarterback Dane Avila. Russell then returned it 20 yards to the Redskins’ 3-yard line. Jeremiah Martinez punched it in from there for the first of his three TDs and Pima was up 7-0 with 3:23 left in the first quarter.
The Roughriders quickly scored after St. Johns turned the ball over on downs. Quarterback Cedrick Grimes maneuvered in the pocket and then slung one sidearm to a sprinting Wade Peterson who turned the short pass into a 64-yard TD and Pima was up 14-0 early in the second.
St. Johns couldn’t do anything offensively on their next possession and punted to Pima. The Roughriders then ran the ball down the field and were aided by a 15-yard horse collar penalty.
Aiden Alder finished the drive with a 32-yard TD run and Pima was up 21-0 and looking to run away with it.
“We came out and we wanted to establish a little bit of dominance,” Wilkins said. “We felt last time we didn’t play up to our potential. We feel we are a lot better team than what we showed last time. And so, we really came out focused and ready to play football.”
But it was the Redskins’ defense that got them back into the game. After a tough incompletion call on a long pass attempt to Keegan Corona, Grimes was pressured on 3rd down and threw an ill-advised pass against his body across the field. Brek Hall made a good break on it and took the INT 20 yards to the house for the pick-six to put St. Johns on the board. The extra point was good and Pima still led, 21-7.
The Redskins defense stepped up again on the next series, however, and stopped the Roughriders on a 4th and 4 to turn the ball over at St. Johns’ 43.
However, the Roughriders countered with their big defensive plays, and Keegan Corona intercepted Avila at the 6-yard line to preserve the lead going into halftime.
It was in the third quarter when the wheels came a bit off. The drive started well, with Martinez getting a nice run and a sweet one-handed catch. But on 4th and 4 Colton Platt laid out the wood and stopped Martinez to turn the ball over to the Redskins.
St. Johns then had two big plays to Sam Winters, starting with a pass that went for 28 yards. Then on 3rd and 7 from the 23, Avila hit Winters for the score and Pima’s lead shrunk to one possession, 21-14.
Two plays later Martinez had the football wrestled away from him and St. Johns had it at Pima’s own 35.
And on the very next play, the Redskins capitalized on the turnover on a 35-yard TD pas to McKray Johnson.
With all the momentum riding high with them St. Johns looked to get the ball back but Pima went to its bread and butter and began pounding the ball with its running backs.
That opened up the passing game and Games hit Jaxon McBiles nearly in stride to put Pima in the Red Zone. Martinez finished the drive on 3rd and inches from the 2, and Rhiley Good knocked through the extra point to put Pima up 28-21.
The ensuing kickoff pinned the Redskins up against their goal line and Pima was awarded a safety when Joe Palmer tackled running back Mark Cox and threw him down in the end zone. Cox’s forward progression was stopped at about the 3 and he was tackled back into the end zone but the official called it a safety anyway and Pima was up 30-21 and was about to get the ball back as well.
The Roughriders quickly capitalized on the turnover with a 38-yard TD-run by Aiden Alder in which he dove for the end zone and just made it across the line as he took out the pylon for the score to make it 37-21.
An INT by Jaxon McBiles on a tipped pass gave the ball back to Pima, and Jeremiah Martinez capped off the night with a thundering 20-yard score to give him 4 TDs and put Pima up 44-21.
“(We) got slapped in the mouth a couple of times – didn’t like that – and decided hey we needed to go back to what we’re good at and it really just opened things up for us,” Wilkins said.
Avila ended the bleeding with a 6-yard rushing TD late in the fourth, but it was too little, too late and Pima ended St. Johns’ season, 44-27.
Wilkins said he likes his team’s chances moving forward, especially if they continue to grow and come together as a team.
“We just gotta play our game, clean up a few things on defense, and keep just pounding at what we do best and I think we’ve got a really good shot at this,” Wilkins said.
In other local prep state football playoff action
The No. 3 Thatcher Eagles (9-1 conference, 9-2 overall) easily dispatched the No. 14 Gilbert Christian Knights (5-5 conference, 6-5 overall), 56-14.
Thatcher will next host the No. 6 Florence Gophers (9-1 conference, 10-1 overall) at EAC’s John Mickelson Field on Friday, Nov. 15, starting at 7 p.m.
Florence’s only loss this season so far has been to No. 1 Benjamin Franklin, 12-21, on Oct. 18.
