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Sunnyside's Rocky Samarano
(left) and Terrell Lennox go after Buena's quarterback
Taylor Stone. |
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RENEE BRACAMONTE /
Tucson Citizen |
Blue Devils pour it on Colts, 55-18
By Matt Hickman
Herald/Review
TUCSON — Taylor Stone’s varsity debut couldn’t have started
more splendidly.
But woeful open field tackling, not seen since their
season-opening loss to Westview, was too much for the Buena
Colts to overcome against Southern Arizona’s winningest
program over the last two decades. Tailback Jovan Stevenson
rushed for a career high 345 yards and three touchdowns to
lead Sunnyside to a 55-18 win Friday night on the south side.
“He did a great job,” Sunnyside head coach Richard Sanchez
said of Stevenson. “We’d been on his behind a while this
season trying to get him to run like that. When he got out in
the open, he had that second burst.”
Sanchez was also very complimentary of the sophomore Buena
quarterback starting in place of senior Devin Veal who was
serving a one-game suspension after being ejected in last
Friday’s loss at Mountain View.
“They’ve got themselves a little gem,” Sanchez said of Stone,
who threw for 147 yards and two touchdowns. “He showed some
poise staying in the pocket and I thought he threw the ball
real well.”
On Buena’s first play from scrimmage, Stone fired a sideline
laser 30 yards to a streaking Jake Muasau locked in man
coverage. Muasau ripped the ball out of the air in stride and
strode to the end zone for an 82-yard touchdown. The point
after was blocked and Buena led 6-0.
Stevenson knotted the game 13 seconds later, going in from 37
yards out and the PAT put Sunnyside up 7-6.
After a Buena punt, quarterback Jamie Valdez capped
Sunnyside’s longest drive of the night with a two-yard sneak
that put the Blue Devils up 14-6.
But Stone wasn’t done. Kevin Stewart intercepted a Valdez pass
and took it 44 yards to the Sunnyside 22 and four plays later,
on third and goal from the Devils’ three, Stone looked to
Muasau again on a fade pattern against Stevenson. Muasau used
his height and upper body strength to pull down the touchdown
catch.
Buena went for two points to try to make up for the missed
PAT, but Stewart was stopped a yard shy.
On the ensuing kickoff, Buena’s open field tackling woes were
displayed again as Patrick Medina rumbled 89 yards, nearly
untouched, for a touchdown. The PAT was wide right and
Sunnyside led 20-12 with 7:22 to play in the half.
After another Russell Klabough punt, the Buena defense came up
with another key turnover.
This time it was Jared Haymore picking off a Valdez pass in
traffic and cutting across the field for a 43-yard touchdown
return.
Still trying to chase that missed extra point, Buena went for
two again, but this time, Stone’s pass to Muasau in the corner
fell incomplete and the Colts trailed 20-18 with 4:34 to go in
the half.
Just as Buena crept back into the game and stole all of the
momentum, poor open field tackling did them in once and for
all a minute later.
A reverse to slot receiver Alex Leon turned into a
gamebreaking and backbreaking 58-yard touchdown run that put
Sunnyside in front 27-18 at the half.
Stone completed 7 of his first 11 passes for 144 yards, but
thereafter the Sunnyside defense kept him in check, as Stone’s
next 13 passes fell incomplete.
“We changed the way we were covering receivers,” Sanchez said.
“We tried to bring different people with pressure — we had to
get to him.”
Even with Sunnyside mindful of the Buena passing attack, the
Colts were not able to get their running game, spearheaded by
junior tailback Jamal Womble, going.
Womble, who was held to just 23 yards on 17 carries last week,
was stymied again. In the first half Womble ran for just nine
yards on 10 carries. He finished with 72 yards on 19 carries,
but the bulk of those yards came after Sunnyside had blown the
game open in the second half.
Stevenson plowed through a huge wedge off left tackle en route
to a 56-yard touchdown to put the Devils up 34-18 and with
2:08 to play in the third, the home team took a
three-possession lead when Stevenson picked up a snap fumbled
by Valdez and against a weary Buena defense, ran 36 yards for
the score.
Buena fell to 4-3 on the season with the loss while Sunnyside
improved to 5-2 heading into their homecoming game next week
against Mountain View which lost to Salpointe Catholic Friday
night.
Buena’s homecoming is also next week and the guests will be
Salpointe.
In their first home game in three weeks, the Colts will almost
certainly need to beat the Lancers to remain in position for a
state playoff berth.
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