Lehi Sports
Relentless defense and raw emotion spark thrilling win for Falcon football
Jennifer Thomas / Lehi Free Press
The Skyridge football team vanquished an out-of-state, nationally-ranked heavyweight on Saturday, Aug. 29, outlasting the Hun School Raiders of Princeton, New Jersey, in a thrilling 31-24 victory.
After a weather delay, playing at a neutral site at West High School as part of the multi-game inaugural Panther Classic showcase, the cross-country matchup turned into a back-and-forth battle that wasn’t decided until the final moments of the game.
A highly competitive game from the opening kickoff, it was clear that neither the massive visiting Raiders nor the powerhouse Falcons were willing to give an inch. The elite Hun School squad showcased an explosive offense that matched Skyridge blow for blow.
“I thought we did a lot of good things today, but we still let them stay in the game,” said Skyridge head Coach Justin Hemm. “We put ourselves in a situation where we could have put the game away earlier, however, the team was resilient and able to finish the last drive to finish the job.
“We will get back and watch film and learn some things from this game. We want to pride ourselves on our discipline, doing the right things and doing our job in a variety of ways and that’s how discipline can show itself. Ultimately, they did a pretty good job of being disciplined today,” continued Hemm.
Skyridge junior quarterback Jagger Fountaine spearheaded a relentless offensive attack, scoring a touchdown on the ground and throwing for three more.
On the day Fountaine completed 29-for-46 (63%) passes for 297 yards, three scores and one interception. He also rushed for 38 yards on six carries to end the game.
The Raiders scored first on a 32-yard field goal early in the first quarter. The Falcons answered with a long drive ending in a three-yard catch by junior receiver Steeler Wesley to get Skyridge on the board followed by a PAT from junior Evan Kopp, ending the first quarter at 7-3.
The Falcon defense forced a three-and-out late in the second quarter. On the ensuing punt attempt, Skyridge senior linebacker Rex Caswell broke through the Hun line and blocked the kick.
The ball was recovered by senior linebacker Sa Tanuvasa, and he advanced the ball eight yards to the 20-yard line. The drive concluded with a 25-yard Kopp field goal, ending the half with a 10-3 advantage for Skyridge.
“Defense really set the tone for this game,” Hemm said. “For about two and a half quarters they controlled the game and put the Raiders in bad situations.
“The offense needed to do better by taking advantage of that. Unfortunately, we did not do that, and the Raiders were able to string some drives together at the end to make it interesting,” he added.
Senior offensive lineman Andy Anderson said, “We showed up today. I feel like we have been preparing all week for this game and we were dominant up front. The Raiders were big, but we went out and did our best in the game.”
Fountaine scored first in the third quarter with an 18-yard run, followed up by a scoring toss to Falcon junior receiver Koa Wallwork, who made a 27-yard, toe-tapping, corner-of-the-endzone catch for the score to give Skyridge a 24-3 lead.
However, the electric stretch that followed featured a furious comeback by the premier Hun team, which scored one touchdown in the third quarter and two in the final period.
During the fourth quarter, Hun’s massive offensive line protected their quarterback and opened holes in the Falcon defense, allowing their offense to come alive and tie the game at 24-all.
Senior defensive back Crew Stevens and senior linebacker Sua Ripley came up with a timely sack of the Raider quarterback to force a punt with 2:32 remaining.
The Falcon offense then methodically marched down the field, working the clock and setting up the winning touchdown in dramatic fashion with Fountaine finding sophomore Malosi Shepard wide open in the back of the endzone for a 10-yard strike in the final seconds.
“Jagger battled with ups and downs throughout the game. For offense to put together a two-minute drive near the end of the game and get hit with some great defense from a well-coached team was some big-time stuff,” said Hemm.
“We knew this was going to be a battle, but we took pride in our preparation, and our coaches told us that we will be ‘tested this whole season’ and this was a test,” said Ripley.
“We did not underestimate our opponent, and we played to our high standard and got the job done,” he added. “I am definitely going to clean up some things but overall, I’m proud of what we did today.”
Fountaine displayed remarkable poise under pressure throughout the game, delivering deep strikes down the sideline to keep the chains moving and answering every counter punch by the Raiders.
Junior running back Beckham Bennett anchored the ground game, grinding out 64 yards on 12 carries. Sophomore running back Ului Faletau added another 45 tough yards on 11 carries. Senior wide receiver Omarion Sanders added eight catches for 113 yards.
“The first drive today was amazing,” said Fountaine. “It was the best way to start. We slowed it down but picked it up in the second half and I feel it was the best offensive game we’ve played so far.
“The O-line are studs, they have been working so hard throughout the spring and summer and they are good. We may have been under-sized today, but it didn’t matter, they were really solid. This game they really handled them,” the quarterback added.
The stubborn Falcon defense was led by senior defensive back Trey Harper and Ripley with seven combined tackles each and Ripley with 2.5 sacks and two hurries. Junior defensive back Eli Mortensen and sophomore linebacker Drayson Afalava tallied six tackles each.
Caswell and Tanuvasa contributed to the defensive effort with tackles and leadership on the field. Skyridge’s poise under pressure ultimately made the difference in an emotionally-charged game.
“Defense felt great today,” said Caswell. “We stopped the run when we needed to. We brought the energy today and the juice for more. We wanted it today, we wanted it for Skyridge, and we wanted it for Utah.”
“We all trusted in each other and had a couple of rough plays, but we were able to bounce back,” said Ripley. “I am grateful to be in this position with everyone on this team and looking forward to next week.”
Anderson concluded, “We love the energy, the cheering and noise – it keeps us going and everyone brought it today.”
With the hard-fought, one-score victory, the Skyridge Falcons improve their record to 2-1 as they continue through a grueling early-season schedule.
They will carry this cross-regional momentum forward as they prepare to visit another major out-of-state challenger, Liberty High School in Henderson, Nevada. The game is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 4 with kick-off at 7 p.m. PDT.
Photos by Matt Paepke.
