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WASHINGTON — In the Wednesday night matchup, the Crimson Cliffs Mustangs finished its season with a 9-1 record and earned the Region 9 title. Despite the team's best efforts, the Flyers of Dixie High fell short to end their season 4-6.
The first quarter saw the Mustangs go up 21-0 in rather unorthodox fashion.
Though the score may suggest otherwise, it was more of a defensive showcase than anything else. Crimson Cliffs received to start the game, but turned the ball over on downs near the red zone. On the Flyers' first offensive snap, quarterback Wyatt Truman threw right into the arms of Crimson Cliffs' Rowen Williams for a pick-six score.
After getting the ball back, Dixie wasted another offensive opportunity when Truman threw his second interception of the night, this time to Brayson Phillips. The Flyers defense made up for it by forcing another turnover on downs, but it wasn't long before Malakai Alofipo recovered a Flyers fumble for a 20-yard touchdown.
It was 14-0, but every point had been scored by the Mustangs defense.
The Crimson Cliffs offense wanted in on the action before the end of the quarter. The third touchdown came in an uncommon way when Steele Barben tossed a shovel pass to Caiden Garcia-Casey with less than two minutes on the clock.
Dixie opened up the second quarter with possession of the ball. It took Truman less than 10 seconds to throw his third of six total interceptions on the night, giving Phillips his second of the game as well as his career.
Both teams settled in after that, scoring one touchdown apiece. Alofipo caught a pass from Barben in the end zone, but not before it bounced off a Dixie defender.
The Flyers got their score in with just over a minute left in the half. Truman threw a long pass to Jaxon Barben, who reached over his defender to make the catch in the end zone, though kicker Jonathan Bibiano's PAT attempt was blocked.
Following the touchdown, Dixie recovered the kick after Crimson Cliffs was unable to get control of it. That put the Flyers on the Mustangs' 34-yard line, and they crept up just enough for a field goal attempt. Once again, Bibiano's kick was blocked, and the teams went into the locker room with a 28-6 score.
The Flyers struck first in the second half when Sylas Russell ran it in for a touchdown to set up a 2-point conversion attempt. Truman's pass was, again, touched by a Mustangs defender, but David Bartschi snagged it to secure the extra points.
Crimson Cliffs scored twice more, both passing touchdowns from Barben; one was to Alofipo, his third, while the other was to Boston Adamson. The Mustangs scored an additional two more times to close out the night, this time with rushing scores from McCord Christiansen and Mason Topalian in the senior night win.
"We worked really hard for this," Barben said. "We've given it our all. It's nice to see it pay off. Region champs!"
Moving into the playoffs, the Mustangs will have a first-round bye due to being the top team in 4A. With 22 teams making it into the bracket, Dixie will also compete in the 4A tournament.
