Region 10 football: Crimson Cliffs, Snow Canyon and Desert Hills all get decisive wins

ST. GEORGE — Friday was a night of blowouts in Region 10 as Snow Canyon picked up a decisive home win over Dixie, and both Crimson Cliffs and Desert Hills won big on the road.

Following are recaps of Friday’s action:

Snow Canyon 56, Dixie 12

For the second week in a row, Snow Canyon’s weapons exploded early and often in a drubbing of their crosstown rivals.

“Last year Dixie kind of whipped us, and so I was like, I gotta pay ‘em back,” Snow Canyon senior Will Warner told St. George News. “You gotta get it back. Senior Night, obviously, so I was playing my heart out. All you can do.”

Warner started things off for Snow Canyon with an 82-yard interception return for a touchdown on the game’s first possession.

Snow Canyon hosts Dixie in Region 10 football, St. George, Utah, Sept. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jacqui Knighton, St. George News

Then he collected a 38-yard scoring toss from senior quarterback Hunter Johnson and the home team quickly led 14-0.

Teagan Hugh ran untouched into the end zone at the end of the first quarter and Snow Canyon was comfortably ahead 21-0. 

Dixie dealt with adversity in the form of injuries as several key players were out of the lineup before the contest even started, and quarterback Jalen Schultz and playmaker Seth Takau were both chased all over the field and punished by Warriors defenders.

Senior Mason Kesterson accounted for both Dixie scores, first taking a screen pass for an 83-yard touchdown, then returning an interception 30 yards for a touchdown late in the second quarter.

Those two scores by the Flyers were sandwiched around a third Warner touchdown, this one a 90-yard kick return.

Two more touchdown passes from Johnson went to Hugh (80 yards) and Brooks Esplin (35 yards) and Snow Canyon took a 49-12 lead into halftime.

Rockwell Jones rounded out the scoring in the contest with his 6-yard touchdown burst in the third quarter.

Corbin Christian was a perfect 8-for-8 kicking extra points in the Warriors win. Johnson finished with 242 yards through the air with four touchdown passes.

Dixie’s offense finished with just 173 total yards, held in check by a smothering defensive effort by the Warriors.

“You hate to say we needed to go through adversity to sharpen up and come together,” Snow Canyon head coach Mike Esplin said. “I think unselfishness–throw to the guy that’s open and the guy that’s open does the job–I think we’re very unselfish right now and making good reads.”

Snow Canyon plays next Friday at Pine View at 7 p.m.

Desert Hills 49, Hurricane 0

At Hurricane, the Desert Hills Thunder overcame a sluggish start to post a decisive shutout win over the Tigers.

Hurricane hosts Desert Hills in Region 10 football action, Hurricane, Utah, Sept. 30, 2022 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News

Neither team scored in the first quarter, as they traded punts on their first two possessions. However, the Thunder drove to inside the Hurricane 10-yard line by the time the first quarter ended. 

Tyden Morris then put Desert Hills on the scoreboard with a 1-yard rushing TD with 11:09 left in the second quarter. Xander Jones converted  the extra-point kick, the first of seven he would make before the night was over.

Hurricane’s next two possessions ended in turnovers, with Desert Hills capitalizing on both.

After the Tigers lost a fumble, the Thunder drove down and scored on a short TD pass from quarterback Noah Fuailetolo to Javiyen Cummings, making it 14-0 with just under five minutes left before halftime.

Then, during Hurricane’s next drive, Lincoln Holmes snagged an interception in the backfield. The Thunder would then march down the field and ultimately score on an 8-yard TD run by Kona Crowell with 1:16 left in the second quarter, thereby taking a 21-0 halftime lead.

Crowell scored two more TDs during the third quarter, first on a 1-yard run and then on a 31-yard pass reception. That put the Thunder up 35-0 and activated the “mercy rule” running clock just before the third quarter ended.

Desert Hills scored two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter, both on long plays. The first came on a 62-yard scoring pass to Ayzen Cummings from backup quarterback Beau Wall. Then, a few minutes later, Wall broke loose on a QB keeper play and rushed for a 75-yard score to make it 49-0.

In the closing minute, Hurricane mustered one last attempt to break the shutout, but the Desert Hills defense stopped the Tigers on fourth down at the 2-yard line with 27 seconds left.

The game began on a somber note, as players, coaches and fans observed a moment of silence for a Hurricane High School student who passed away the night before when his bicycle was struck by a vehicle at an intersection a few blocks from the school. The teen’s name was announced as Robert Howard, a 15-year-old sophomore.

Next Friday, Desert Hills hosts Cedar while Hurricane hosts Cottonwood in a non-region contest.

– written by Jeff Richards

Crimson Cliffs 40, Pine View 14

The top-ranked Mustangs jumped ahead 21-0 on the road and took a 26-14 lead into halftime before shutting out the Panthers in the second half and rolling to victory.

Pine View hosts Crimson Cliffs in Region 10 football, St. George, Utah, Sept. 30, 2022 | Photo by Aaron Crane, St. George News

Junior quarterback Steele Barben continued to put up big numbers, throwing for 177 yards and three touchdowns.

Two of those scoring tosses went to Boston Adamson (covering 15 and 17 yards) and Barben’s third scoring strike went to Luke Childs (10 yards).

Meanwhile, McCord Christiansen ran for a 7-yard Mustangs touchdown and Kaden Haws brought a fumble recovery 20 yards back to the house in the second quarter.

Mason Topalian’s 1-yard TD run rounded out the Crimson Cliffs attack. Kicker Ty Ottenschott went 4-for-6 on extra point attempts.

Pine View’s touchdowns were both passes from quarterback Tyler Brown. The first first went for 10 yards to Blake Stucki and the second was hauled in by Brock Harris for a 35-yard score.

Crimson Cliffs goes to Dixie Friday at 7 p.m. while Pine View stays home to host Snow Canyon, also Friday at 7 p.m. 

Region 10 football standings, as of Oct. 1 (region, overall)
  1. Crimson Cliffs 4-0, 7-1.
  2. Snow Canyon 4-1, 5-3.
  3. Desert Hills 2-2, 5-3.
  4. Dixie 2-2, 4-3.
  5. Cedar 2-2, 3-4.
  6. Hurricane 1-4, 1-7.
  7. Pine View 0-4, 0-6.

Friday night’s local 3A/2A/1A recaps

In 3A’s Region 12, the Juab Wasps defeated Canyon View 42-14 at Nephi. Meanwhile, in 2A action, the Beaver Beavers defeated their northern neighbors, the Millard Eagles 17-3 at Fillmore. In 1A football, Parowan fell on the road to Duchesne, 34-20 while the Kanab Cowboys won at home over Milford, 49-27.

In Thursday night’s Battle of the Wolves, Enterprise improved to 8-0 overall with a 35-7 win over North Sevier. Kyron Bracken scored three times, including a 20-yard pick-six, and Aiden Daugherty scored twice for Enterprise. Kyson Bosshardt had a 36-yard touchdown run for North Sevier.

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