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LEHI — The matchup between the Skyridge Falcons and American Fork Cavemen was supposed to be an evenly-balanced game as both teams were coming in undefeated and ranked in the top five of the UHSAA RPI rankings.
That was not the case as the No. 3 Falcons defended their nest by crushing No. 4 Cavemen 41-9.
Holding an offense as prolific as the Cavemen in check is a tough task but Skyridge head coach Jon Lehman said he was impressed by the way his team’s defense not only took on the test but aced it with a second half shut out.
“Really proud of our guys for digging in on defense and staying focused for the entire game,” Lehman said. “I thought our pass rush was dominant and our corners made a ton of plays.”
While the defense was dominant, the Falcons offense got off to a scorching hot start with two consecutive touchdown drives to begin the game — a 7-yard scamper by Falcons running back Jeter Fenton and then quarterback McCae Hillstead connected with receiver Mitch Adamson on a long touchdown pass.
The Falcons’ dominant defensive line was not only able to wreck the Cavemen’s game plan, they also created a huge turnover when Falcons defensive end Stone Mulitalo picked off a pass from Cavemen quarterback Maddux Madsen and took it 40 yards to the house, giving his team a 21-3 lead with 8 minutes remaining in the first half.
Skyridge would continue to ride the momentum in the second half as Hillstead used his legs and his arm to lead the Falcons on long drives. Hallstead ran in a touchdown himself from the 3-yard line, but the main catalyst for the Falcons’ red zone success was Fenton, who had three rushing touchdowns on the night. Lehman said he loves Fenton’s toughness, work ethic and dependability.
“He can do it all and he’s a super committed and dedicated kid,” Lehman said. ”He works incredibly hard and he has the athleticism to make plays outside the tackles.”
Fenton said he loved the way his teammates played together Friday night and credited his huge performance to the big boys up front.
“Everything starts with our offensive line, and they and the rest of our team did a great job of executing our game plan tonight,” Fenton said.
The Cavemen struggled all night on offense, and the miscommunications, drops, unnecessary penalties and an inability to sustain drives lead to the Caveman only scoring 9 points in the game; it‘s the first time they have not scored at least 30 points this entire season.
Cavemen quarterback Maddux Madsen and wide receivers Will Zundel and Fisher Ingersoll were able to connect on some big plays, but the offense struggled to find the end zone throughout the night. Madsen threw two interceptions and the team was never able to run the ball consistently.
Skyridge moves to 6-0 and will look to keep their undefeated season alive when they head to Pleasant Grove to take on the ranked Vikings next week. American Fork is now 5-1 and will look to rebound at home where they host the Westlake Thunder (3-3) Friday night.
