Wolves top Raptors in defensive battle
AURORA » In a rematch of last year’s Class 5A state quarterfinal, No. 4 Grandview outlasted Centennial League rival No. 7 Eaglecrest 14- 11 in a defensive chess match at Aurora’s Legacy Stadium on Thursday night.
“We knew it was going to be a hardfought battle,” Grandview junior quarterback Jacob Burr said. “It’s a rivalry just across the street and we know them, they know us. We knew it was going to be a hard game and we were ready for a battle.”
Grandview ( 6- 0) saw the most success between the two offenses, scoring the only touchdown of the first half when Burr punched it in from the 1- yard line to give the Wolves a 7- 0 halftime lead.
Against an Eaglecrest ( 5- 1) defensive front featuring Michigan recruit Reece Atteberry, the Wolves’ offense endured its fair share of struggles. Grandview twice drove inside the red zone only to see sophomore kicker Ben Beckman miss field goal attempts of 30 and 31 yards.
“The last few have been high scoring, this one was definitely a defensive game,” Grandview head coach John Schultz said. “Centennial League defenses come to play every week. Eaglecrest has a very good defense and they showed that tonight.”
On the offensive series capped by the second missed field goal early in the second quarter, Wolves tight end Joe Renner dropped what would’ve been the game’s opening touchdown.
Compounding Eaglecrest’s issues on offense was the absence of wide receiver Ty Robinson. The Raptors’ leader in both receiving yards ( 260) and receptions ( 13) left in the first quarter after suffering an ankle injury.
Defense set up Eaglecrest’s first points in the second half. Following a fumble recovery, Raptors kicker A. J. Heber booted a 39yard field goal, cutting the Grandview lead to 7- 3 early in the third quarter.
“We had our times on offense, but we just couldn’t quite get it going,” Eaglecrest head coach Shawn Marsh said. “But our defense came to play so that was exciting.”
Grandview responded with a touchdown on the ensuing drive. Tight end Noah Salazar hauled in a 33- yard pass from Burr, extending the Wolves’ lead to 14- 3 with under ten minutes left in the stanza. The play capped a 75- yard drive.
Eaglecrest looked to make it a one- possession game early in the fourth quarter, but another field goal attempt from Heber was blocked.
The Raptors did make it interesting at the end, however, as quarterback Max Marsh connected with Jalen Stewart on a 6- yard pass play for a touchdown. The pair connected again for a two- point conversion to make it 14- 11 with 1: 50 remaining, but the Raptors failed to recover an onside kick and Grandview held on for the win.
“The offensive players for both them and us had trouble getting started tonight,” Schultz said.
“But we’ll see ( Eaglecrest) again in the playoffs.”