Lehi Sports
Falcon football dominates Pleasant Grove
The Skyridge football team ran roughshod over the Pleasant Grove Vikings and soared to an impressive 49-7 victory on the road Thursday (Oct. 10).
The Falcons scored early with an eight-yard pass from junior quarterback Kaneal Sweetwyne to senior Isaac Westover, normally an offensive lineman, and never looked back.
The Falcon offensive attack was balanced on the ground and in the air with four passing touchdowns and two scores on the ground and an additional pick six to round out the tally.
“When I got the ball tonight it was unreal, I was excited to score,” said Westover. “It was a real high point for me, and I am grateful for the opportunity to play.”
Senior running back Jared Iakopo scored on a well-executed screen pass followed by junior receiver Hunter Sheffield with a 34-yard catch. Junior Harvie Moea’i scored his first touchdown of the season with a three-yard catch from Sweetwyne.
Senior running back Zaeden Selu followed up with a five-yard run into the endzone with 2:06 left in the second quarter. Senior receiver Bosten Fountaine rounded out the scoring for Skyridge with a three-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Pleasant Grove managed to avoid a shutout with a late one-yard touchdown by Wade Christiansen for the final score of the game.
Moea’i said, “Scoring that touchdown tonight was a highlight, it was fun. I was surprised that I got the TD and so happy I was able to do it.”
The Falcon offense had no trouble scoring at will with the O-Line winning the battle up front. Sweetwyne managed the offense effectively throughout the game. The second half allowed opportunities for backups to get valuable playingexperience in a Varsity setting.
Skyridge head Coach Justin Hemm said, “It was great to see our younger players get an opportunity tonight. Offensively, it was good to see them spread the ball around and see a lot of different receivers and running backs touch the ball. The guys ran some great routes tonight.
“We had some different players step up in this game: Harvei and Isaac offensively getting touchdowns. We had some others defensively do a great job. Iakopo Malufau was out tonight and we had some other players step up,” added Hemm.
The Falcons came out energized for the second half of the game. Junior linebacker Easton Simmons kept the momentum going with a 66-yard pick six in the third quarter. The Skyridge defense held the Vikings scoreless until the last 30 seconds of the game.
Senior defensive back Samuel Pollmann registered four tackles in the first half while younger defensive players kept up the defensive attack during the second.
“Overall, this was a good game for us. We had some younger players show up when they got their chance to play tonight,” said Moea’i. “Defensively we did well. There are still things we can work on, but we gave a good effort tonight. This was a team win.”
“We challenged the team this week on executes. We wanted to play a complete game and execute with our standard and I thought we did that tonight. Overall, I think the players that came in and played some different roles, successfully, was huge for us this week,” said Hemm.
Skyridge will play their final region game at home as they take on American Fork for senior night on Wednesday (Oct. 16). Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
