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SALT LAKE CITY — The East High Leopards overcame six first-half turnovers and an early 14-point deficit to beat the impressive Timpview Thunderbirds 47-34. The win gets them to Rice-Eccles stadium and in a 4A semifinal game for the second season in a row.
East head coach Brandon Matich had said after last week's opening-round win over Skyline that Timpview traditionally played his Leopards as tough or tougher than anyone. This week, however, it was East that played themselves into an early hole, throwing an early pick-six and turning the ball over five times in the first quarter.
"The resiliency of this team is unbelievable," Matich said after the game. "They kept their composure, they kept finding, they still believed, and it's a credit to our kids and our coaches."
After falling behind 21-7, East seemed to be in trouble. Then senior running back extraordinaire Jaylen Warren came to the rescue. Already having notched an 80-yard touchdown run that was East's lone score to that point, Warren broke off another 46-yard for a score, a record-breaking run that made him the state of Utah's single-season rushing leader, replacing Kelly Miller's (Beaver) total of 2,561 yards set in 1979. He would add two more touchdowns before the game was out, making it four on the day and staggering 10 in two playoff games. When asked about the record, Warren deflected the praise to his offensive line.
"It feels great, but I wish that I could give my o-line all the credit," Warren said.
Just before halftime and trailing 21-13, senior defensive back Tyler Eteuati, back after having missed the last several games, intercepted a Timpview pass on East's own 34-yard line. One play later, sophomore running Charlie Vincent took an option pitch 66 yards to the house, and East had managed to claw its way back into the game. Matich called Eteuati's interception a key play in terms of momentum.
"Oh my gosh, that was huge," Matich said. "That was a huge moment. We'd just turned the ball over, and that was a big moment for us. It's good for us to have him back in uniform."
The Leopards were able to control much of the second half on the strength of an improved defense and solid ground game that wore the T-birds down as the game progressed. Timpview and quarterback Jordan Mariteragi gave East all they could handle though, as the senior tossed two touchdowns, both to wide receiver Kyle Van Leeuwen.
Next up for the Leopards is a matchup with Maple Mountain, the No. 2 seed coming out of Region 8. Matich said his team didn't care who they played, as long as they got another chance to compete in these playoffs.
"We live in the shadow of that sucker," Matich said, pointing to the University of Utah's Rice-Eccles Stadium just across the street. "We have to look at it every day. It'd be a shame if we didn't get to play there. We're excited to get the chance to go up there and play again." Stephen Lindsey is a student at the University of Utah currently working as an intern with KSL.com in Salt Lake City. Contact him at th3sl3@gmail.com or interact via his twitter handle, @slthe3
