TEMPE - Sunnyside High School's rushing attack was again
dynamite in the fourth quarter of a Class 4A football state
championship game.
Consecutive big runs by
junior quarterback Jaime Cota and junior running back
Xavier
Smith late in the final quarter proved crucial in Sunnyside's
win over Glendale Cactus in the 2003 state title game Saturday
at Sun Devil Stadium.
The back-to-back runs
helped set up a 1-yard touchdown run by Smith that secured a
21-13 victory for the South Side school, their second 4A state
crown in three years.
"We made the plays
when we had to," Sunnyside coach Richard Sanchez said.
"Early on, they stopped the run. They controlled the line
of scrimmage."
Sunnyside managed a
meager 43 yards rushing in the first half. But the second half
was a different story.
"We were just
waiting for (Smith) to spring loose, and finally the offensive
line got it going," Jesus
Acuna, Sunnyside's left guard,
said.
Smith shook loose around
left end on a second-and-seven play and ran 32 yards for a
score on the first drive of the third quarter, giving the Blue
Devils' their first lead of the game at 13-10.
Sunnyside started its
third possession of the fourth quarter at its 20-yard line
with a little more than three minutes to go and the Blue
Devils ahead 14-13.
"Coach (Glenn)
Posey kept working it and working it, and Xavier final got
free on one," Sanchez said. "Jaime's scramble was
the big one."
Facing a second-and-12
play from the Sunnyside 18, Posey, the offensive coordinator,
called a quarterback draw that Cota converted into a 12-yard
gain for a first down.
