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SALEM HILLS — What promised to be an epic clash of the Titans between the top passing quarterbacks in the state, turned into gritty defensive trench warfare on Wednesday night as Salem Hills squeezed by Maple Mountain, 14-6.
It was an unusually low scoring game for two teams who are used to putting up big numbers. In fact, coming into the game, they both averaged over 35 points a game and boasted the No. 1 and No. 2 passing quarterbacks in the state (4A) in Porter Gustin (Salem Hills) and Jaron Hall (Maple Mountain). Gustin, at 21 passing touchdowns, also leads in total offense and Hall is right behind him with 20 passing touchdowns.
However, in a game marked by dazzling displays of defense, the two quarterbacks only managed one passing touchdown between them. It came at the hands of Hall who hit Canon Miner with a 70-yard bomb in the first quarter. Salem’s two scores came on short runs by Gustin who found the end zone late in the first quarter and then not again until the final drive with time running out.
A well-prepared and pugnacious Maple Mountain defense had one objective going into the game – stop the aerial attack that has been Salem’s bread and butter all year. They accomplished that right from the start and forced the Skyhawks to go to their ground game, something Salem Hills has not had to do this year. Responding to the challenge, Salem Hills put the ball in the hands of Jaxon Bowden and watched him turn two yards into eight all night long. It quickly became the much-needed weapon that has been missing from the Skyhawk arsenal all year and produced big yards for them, totaling 224 on the ground for the game.
Salem Hills head coach Joel Higginson was happy with what the team accomplished on the ground.
“We knew we needed to establish a strong running game tonight and I felt like we did a good job, minus the two penalties that cost us big yardage,” he said.
Maple Mountain’s normally high-powered offense struggled throughout the contest to gain any traction against the tenacious Skyhawk defense and were held scoreless after the first quarter.
A big factor in their foiled efforts was Skyhawk defensive end Tim Fleming. He alone accounted for a blocked punt, a blocked PAT and a blocked field goal. But perhaps it was his last play of the game that proved to be his biggest. With 13 seconds left in the game and Maple Mountain in scoring position on the Skyhawk 32 yard line, Fleming deflected a perfectly placed pass from Hall to his open wide receiver in the end zone, sealing the victory for Salem Hills.
“Tim Fleming clearly has a knack for making big plays when we need him to. I can’t say enough about the tremendous effort he gives us game in and game out,” said Salem Hills coach Higginson of Fleming’s blocked kicks. “He personally saved us four points tonight on kicks plus a potential touchdown with his deflection.”
Fleming’s heroics came on the heels of another set of big plays by Skyhawk defensive lineman Hayden Albrecht who sacked Hall for big losses not once but twice in the final minutes of the game as Maple Mountain was looking to tie the game. Adding to an earlier sack, Albrecht finished with three sacks on the night.
Of his team’s defensive effort Coach Higginson said, “Fortunately for us, our defense came up with big play after big play. It’s games like this that say a lot about how our guys compete and what kind of character they have. Will they step up and compete when the game is on the line? My guys definitely did that tonight — they showed what they are made of.”
Maple Mountain showed their defensive prowess throughout the game as well, most especially with two impressive and gutsy goal line stands late in the game preventing a Skyhawk score from the two yard line and three yard line. Ultimately, though, it was not enough to prevent the Skyhawks from finally pounding one in late in the game to seal the deal.
With this win, the Skyhawks improve to 8-1 on the year — the best record in school history — and lock up second place in region 8 behind undefeated Timpview. Maple Mountain falls to 3-6 overall and is in a two-way battle with Spanish Fork to clinch the fourth place spot for the upcoming state playoffs.
