Pahrump Valley garnered 349 yards to overpower Boulder City in non-league action to win their homecoming game as the Trojans football team dominated the game with their rushing attack.
It took the Trojans a quarter to get their offense going in sync on Friday.
“We started off slow again,” Trojans head coach Joe Clayton said. “But once we settled down, the offensive line dominated and we established the run. They exploded off the ball and this was their best game.”
Top rushers in the game
The Trojans run by committee and the committee was strong that night.
“Really, any one of our running backs can have a great day,” the coach said. “Roundy works hard and does everything we ask of him. Same with Brown. Brown sees the hole and cuts quick and is elusive.”
Junior Trojans running back DeAngelo Brown was the committee chairman as he led the attack with 131 yards rushing. The vice chair was senior running back David Roundy, who rushed for 84 yards. The other two board members were junior running back Nico Velazquez with 67 yards and senior quarterback Dylan Coffman, who ran for 67 yards.
Velazquez had been hurt since the Durango game and he came back strong against Boulder City.
“It was good to see him out there and he wasn’t even 100 percent, but he still played hard,” Clayton said. “He will get two weeks off to rest and heal more for the Desert Pines game.”
The first quarter
In the first quarter on Pahrump Valley’s first drive, Roundy had a 50-yard run down to the Eagles 20-yard line, but the Trojans offense stalled in the red zone, turning the ball over on downs. That was just a warm-up.
The Eagles then took the ball 79 yards down the field, scoring on a Shaun Jones pass to Briggs Huxford in the end zone. The Eagles went up 8-0, converting the 2-point conversion to end the first quarter.
The second quarter
The Trojans were able to get good field position with Brown taking the ball to the 30-yard line on the Eagle kickoff. Roundy then had a 19-yard run to midfield on the first play and on the second play he got 15 more yards to take the ball deep into Eagle’s territory. Velazquez and Roundy then pounded the ball to the six-yard line to set up the first Trojans score. On the next play, Coffman took the ball into the goal on a two-yard keeper. Pahrump went for the two-point conversion but failed to convert it. The score was 8-6.
The Trojans defense then stopped Boulder with two sacks that forced the Eagles to punt.
Pahrump took over on their own 35-yard line with 3:39 left in the first half. The Trojans only managed to get to midfield before they punted the ball, giving the ball back to the Eagles on their 19-yard line.
In the first quarter, the Eagles were completing passes down the seam at will and so the Trojans adjusted in the second quarter.
On third and six, the Eagles tried to pass for a first down with the seam pass, but this time Trojans safety Cory Bergan intercepted the ball for a pick-six (touchdown). The Trojans converted the two-point and went up 14-8, which ended the half.
“We made some adjustments on that and Bergan had good timing,” Clayton said.
Third quarter action
The Trojans started the third quarter with the ball on the 38-yard line after a good return. On the first play Brown got across midfield and a personal foul was tacked onto that, giving the Trojans the ball on the Eagles’ 37. On the fourth play of the drive from the Eagles 30-yard line, Coffman ran the ball on a keeper for a 29-yard TD run with 10:39 left in the third. The two-point conversion was good to make the score 22-8.
Pahrump and Boulder didn’t score any more in the third.
The last quarter
Boulder scored its second touchdown in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter. The Eagles went 80 yards down the field and scored on a Jones pass to Huxford,who made the catch on the 10-yard line and then ran it in for the TD. Boulder City failed to convert the two points, which made the score 22-14.
Pahrump started the ball from their own 33-yard line and took the ball to the Eagles’ 31 on six running plays, taking three minutes off the clock.
Four-minute drill time
Then with 4:37 left in the game, Brown got the ball on the 31-yard line and ran 31 yards for a TD. The two-point conversion was good and the Trojans led 30-14.
With 4:09 left to go, Boulder City took over on their 40 but the Trojans defense forced them to three-and-out. Pahrump took over on the 31 and then ran the clock out.
The Trojans will have an extra week to prepare to host the defending Class 3A state champions on Sept. 28.
“We will use all that time to prepare and we will pull out all the stops,” Clayton said.
Contact sports editor Vern Hee at vhee@pvtimes.com