Chris Eaton
Red Mountain played keep away in the first half on Friday night. The Mountain Lions denied visiting Highland from possessing the ball for much of the first half, preventing the Hawks from getting their offense into a rhythm.
In a first half that only featured four possessions for each team (and no turnovers), the Mountain Lions ran 39 offensive plays from scrimmage compared to just 20 for Highland. Red Mountain was able to successfully reach the end zone on three of those drives, including one that took more than seven minutes off of the clock to stake itself out to a 21-0 lead. That would be more than enough during a longer second half, that featured a 57-minute delay for lightning, in a 27-14 victory for the Mountain Lions.
“We gave them a lot of different looks they hadn’t seen on film,” Red Mountain Head Coach Kyle Enders said. “We saw them scrambling and trying to figure things out. Proud of our boys for not getting impatient. Normally, you hurt yourself in drives like that more than anything.”
With the win, Red Mountain (6-3 overall, 2-1 6A East Valley Region) maintained its hopes of returning to the Open Division playoffs. The Mountain Lions began the day at #11 in the 6A rankings and 12 teams are selected for the state’s highest bracket. Highland (4-5, 1-1) played better on both sides of the ball in the second half, but the deficit was too much to overcome. The Hawks were at #17 in the rankings and seem safe to be playing in the first round of the 6A bracket (seeds 13 through 20), which will be announced after next week’s games.
5 players that stood out
Red Mountain WR Airreon Windom
The senior receiver led Red Mountain in receptions (6) and receiving yards (78). Windom has played all four years at RMHS with three on varsity. His usage had gone down the previous few games so I don’t know if the Lions were saving him for a stretch run, but he was productive in this one. His touchdown catch in the second quarter was a thing of beauty as Windom had to make a jump to grab it in the air and land one foot in the back of the end zone. The referees had to conference on it to decide (without the benefit of replay, of course). And he was ruled in. Windom said he works on those sideline and end zone toe-tap plays every week in practice. He was a First Team All-Region as a junior and is approaching 700 yards this season with 8 TDs.
Red Mountain CB Jeffrey Lischke
The junior cornerback made a pair of interceptions in the second half, both in Mountain Lions territory. On the first, Highland had just crossed midfield on its initial possession in the third quarter. Later, the Hawks’ last-gasp effort got them to fourth-and-two at the 8-yard line with just over two minutes remaining. Lischke was there to grab both. This is his first year as a starter and the 6-2, 175-pounder has been a part of the youth movement on an improving Red Mountain defense. A multi-sport athlete (triple jump), Lischke carries a 3.70 GPA.
Red Mountain QB Dayne Silver
The junior (pictured at the top of the article) has been incredibly accurate in his four starts since transferring to RMHS from Eastmark (had to sit first five). Silver came in completing 83 percent of his passes and then started this game 9-for-9. He ended up 17-of-22 for 194 yards and a pair of touchdowns. In the first half, the QB run was a part of his game that wasn’t really shown much last year. Once sacks were taken off the run total, Silver had 41 rushing yards on 17 attempts and accounted for all three of the TDs with a 2-yard sneak right at the end of the first half. He is every bit of 6-5 and holds an offer from Northern Arizona.
Highland WR Kenzo Crawford
After the game, Head Coach Brock Farrel said Crawford is the best freshman receiver in the state. And I’ll back that up! He entered the game leading all ninth graders in yardage (by almost 100) and that was before Friday night, when he caught nine passes for 171 yards (his fourth 100-yard game) and a touchdown (his 7th). By the second half, Red Mountain knew who the ball was going to, but still couldn’t stop him. It didn’t matter if there were multiple defenders in the area, quarterback Paiden Cash Dalhaug could get it to his main receiver. Not every freshman is ready for varsity snaps, particularly at the 6A level, but Crawford is the exception. Will be fun to watch the progress of the 5-11, 160-pounder over the next three seasons.
Highland QB Paiden Cash Dalhaug
The Hawks’ senior quarterback got going in the second half and was particularly successful with the deep balls (five completions of 20 yards or more). Dalhaug finished with 251 yards, his second-highest total on the year along with his 13th TD pass. He makes quick decisions and stays composed when the pressure is coming (only two sacks allowed). The 6-5, 220-pound signal caller is in his second year as Highland’s starter after transferring from Basha. An excellent student, Dalhaug totes a 3.90 GPA.
5 (non-scoring) plays that made a difference
- Leading 7-0 in the second quarter, Dayne Silver completed a 21-yard pass to Airreon Windom to get the Lions in the red zone. They later scored a touchdown on the drive.
- Trailing 21-0 early in the third quarter, Cameron Ellsworth intercepted a pass for Highland (his first of two). Ellsworth returned it 27 yards to the 14-yard line. From the short field, the Hawks cashed it in for their first touchdown.
- Leading 21-7 in the third quarter, Red Mountain faced a third-and-16 at the 4-yard line following a play. However, at the end of the play (after the whistle), Highland committed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty awarding the Lions 15 free yards. They converted on the much more manageable third-and-1 and continued on their drive.
- Trailing 21-7 in the third quarter, Highland had another first down at the Lions’ 14-yard line following Ellsworth’s second interception. But on the very next play, Rosten Wood picked off a pass for Red Mountain and the Lions had it going the other way at the RMHS 32-yard line.
- Trailing 24-14 with less than five minutes remaining, Highland had to go for it on fourth-and-11 from its own 16-yard line. On this last-ditch attempt to stay in the game, Mikko Lopez broke up the pass for Red Mountain and the Lions took over (and added another field goal).
5 key stats
- In its four first-half possessions, Red Mountain had 16 first downs. That’s probably the highest number I’ve seen in a half this year.
- Red Mountain had more than a 2-1 advantage in time of possession. Lions had the ball for 32:30 compared to 15:30 for the Hawks.
- The Mountain Lions shut down the run, so Highland pretty much stopped employing that. Highland ran the ball just 11 times for 23 yards.
- Kenzo Crawford had 171 of the Hawks’ 251 receiving yards.
- Without a doubt, the least-penalized game I’ve seen all year. Only eight total penalties were marked off for 60 yards.
Mountain Lions 27, Hawks 14
HHS. . . . 0 0 7 7 – 14
RMHS. . . 7 14 0 6 – 27
First Quarter
RM: Ronnie Pierson 10 yard pass from Dayne Silver (Chase Pitzer kick), 7:25, 7-0
Second Quarter
RM: Airreon Windom 14 yard pass from Silver (Pitzer kick), 7:46, 14-0
RM: Silver 2 yard run (Pitzer kick), 0:26, 21-0
Third Quarter
HIGH: Kenzo Crawford 14 yard pass from Paiden Cash Dalhaug (Mason Schambach kick), 9:42, 21-7
Fourth Quarter
RM: Pitzer 32 yard FG, 10:01, 24-7
HIGH: Carter Camac 5 yard run (Schambach kick), 9:17, 24-14
RM: Pitzer 30 yard FG, 3:24, 27-14
Team Statistics
First Downs – HIGH: 13, RM: 21. Rushes-Yards – HIGH: 11-23, RM: 49-138. Comp-Att-Int – HIGH: 16-30-3, RM: 17-22-2. Passing Yards – HIGH: 251, RM: 194. Total Yards – HIGH: 274, RM: 332. Fumbles Lost – HIGH: 0, RM: 0. Penalties-Yards – HIGH: 5-35, RM: 3-25.
Individual Leaders
Passing – HIGH: Dalhaug 16-30-3, 251 yards, RM: Silver 17-22-2, 194 yards.
Rushing – HIGH: Cullimore 7-22, RM: Miolla 10-49, Silver 17-41.
Receiving – HIGH: Crawford 9-171, Nguyen 5-72, RM: Windom 6-78, Pierson 3-47.
5 people I talked to after the game
Red Mountain QB Dayne Silver on getting into a rhythm: “We were executing good in the first half. We were maintaining drives and picking up key third-down conversions.”
Highland Head Coach Brock Farrel: “We didn’t match their intensity and our secondary struggled hard (in the first half). I think we were a little bit surprised by how well they ran their routes. In the second half, we finally figured out how to play defense.”
Red Mountain WR Airreon Windom on what playing for the Lions has meant to him: “It means a lot. A lot of blood, sweat, and tears on the field. This week’s practices were great. We came out and played against a good Highland team. They didn’t give up, not at all.”
Red Mountain CB Jeffrey Lischke on what the energy was like coming into this Homecoming game: “It was really good. The energy was definitely up there. Better than all the other games.”
Red Mountain Head Coach Kyle Enders on the growth of his defense this season: “We’re really trying to find what works best with our personnel and our guys. Earlier in the season when we played Casteel (Week 1), a lot of guys got their first varsity time. Now they’re nine games in and they’re starting to play with confidence.”
Next week
Highland will finish its regular season a little further down Brown Road against Mountain View (7-2, 2-0) next Friday. The Toros can clinch the East Valley Region title with a win. In the event of a Hawks’ upset, it would cause a three-way tie, which would be broken by the highest finisher in the final MaxPreps power rankings. Mountain View is currently #8 and blanked Desert Ridge 58-0 on Friday. It was Mountain View’s second shutout of the season. A win for the Hawks would likely give them a home game in the first round of the 6A bracket while a loss would send them on the road.
Red Mountain has completed its three region games (2-1) and will play a freedom game at ALA-Queen Creek (3-6). The Patriots are coming off of a 12-7 loss at Queen Creek. ALA-Queen Creek is ranked at #14 despite the record due to the brutal schedule it has faced. The Patriots have played Centennial, Chandler, and Liberty this season (all ranked in the top 5). At #11 prior to the Highland win, the Mountain Lions are in a position to play a road game in the first round of the Open bracket. It could work out to where Mountain View is the opponent and that would suit Enders just fine. He called a rematch with the Toros his “dreamworld” scenario. Two weeks ago, Red Mountain lost an overtime game to its Brown Road rivals 28-27 as the Lions were stopped on a two-point conversion. Either way, a win over the Patriots should safely have RMHS in the Open bracket.
