The top four seeds in 4A football have all advanced to the state football semi-finals. Third-seeded Snowflake and fourth-seeded Micah Mountain are unbeaten, while the top two seeds, Yuma Catholic and AZ College Prep, each have one loss. Yuma Catholic lost to AZ College Prep on Sept. 27, by a final of 43-29. AZ Preps’ loss came in week one to Crown Point Indiana, now 12-1 in its state.
In their respective quarterfinal rounds, the Lobos had the most decisive win. Their 49-13 win over No. 6 Prescott outweighed the other three results. Yuma Catholic defeated No. 9 Walden Grove 28-13. Mica Mountain took care of No. 5 Thunderbird 38-14, and AZ College Prep won over No. 7 Arcadia 35-14.
Snowflake fell out of the top spot in the 4A rankings in the final week of the season, now as the No. 3 seed they have to travel to take on No. 2 AZ College Prep on Friday night. The Lobos will lose the advantage of colder temperatures and their home field. Top-ranked Yuma Catholic will host No. 4 Mica Mountain on Friday evening also at 7 p.m.
Snowflake earned their trip by virtue of their 36-point win over Prescott. The Badgers led 13-7 before a Jacob LaDuke score gave Snowflake the lead for good at 14-13. Snowflake’s defense shut Prescott down over the final three quarters. Second-quarter touchdowns by LaDuke and Kanton Turley extended the lead to 27-13 at the half.
Karter Raban scored the game’s only points in the third, giving the home team a 34-13 lead. LaDuke scored early in the fourth on a short run, and Brenner Green posted the final score midway through the fourth on a 31-yard touchdown run, making the final 49-13.
LaDuke completed three of his six passes for 70 yards. As they have done all season, their damage came from their vaunted rushing attack. Turley rushed for 93 yards with a score. LaDuke gained 89 yards finding the endzone four times. Raban gained 71 yards, scoring once. Green gained 48 yards with a score.
Raban, Graham Silverhorn, and Merrick Ulberg each had one reception, with Ulberg’s the longest at 37 yards.
Hayydn Nichols led the defense with 14 tackles. Aaden Coor added 13, and Jett Smith finished with 12. Collectively the defense finished with 4.5 quarterback sacks, had one interception and recovered one Badger fumble.
The two winners from Friday night’s games will meet in the 4A State Championship game at 4 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 6. The game will be played at Mountain American Stadium on the campus of ASU.
