Payne Moses is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Gilbert Christian High School for AZPreps365.com.

GILBERT -- After racing out to a 14-0 lead less than a minute into the game, Gilbert Christian controlled the second-half clock for a 34-13 win over region rival Valley Christian on Friday night.

Knights junior Caleb Ely effectively sealed the game with an interception of Valley Christian junior JR Gill with 7:38 left in the fourth quarter. Only targeted once as a wide receiver in the opening half, Ely capped a 15-play, 9-minute drive with a 13-yard TD catch to begin the third quarter.

Gilbert Christian (4-3, 1-0) had absorbed an offensive holding call and 1-yard loss on an end-around run by junior Bennett Juve, setting up a lengthy third-and-goal from the 13.

“Coach (John Carlson) told me what was going to happen,” Ely said. “They were getting the ball in my hands, and I had to go make a play.”

Carlson said Ely put in a lot of work during the offseason, and he is proud to see it paying off in the Knights’ first of four 3A Metro East contests.

“He just willed himself to be a really great receiver, and he’s made big plays all season,” Carlson said in reference to Ely’s six touchdowns through seven games. “He just comes to work every day and does what we ask him to do.”

Gilbert Christian entered the game No. 16 in the first 3A rankings of the season released on Tuesday, and Valley Christian was  No. 14.

Knights senior Rydan Barth flipped the game on its head on the very first play with the team’s first fumble recovery of the season at Valley Christian’s 13-yard line. 

After senior Sam Webb cashed in the turnover with a rushing TD on the next play, senior Brody Moore pounced on his own onside kick. Senior quarterback Tyler Burr then dissected the Trojans defense for a 49-yard passing touchdown to Juve, as three combined snaps led to 14 points for the Knights.

“We saw some opportunities on special teams, and we executed really well,” Carlson said. “Brody Moore is a really good soccer player, a great kicker, a weapon. … We did strike fast.”

The Knights’ time-consuming possession in the third quarter demanded a response from the Trojans, but Valley Christian (3-4, 2-1) only mustered 12 second-half offensive snaps and 4:29 possession time. Junior Trojan running backs Caleb Goldman and Jack Aulerich combined to post 147 ground yards in the first half, but were neutralized for -1 yard in the final 24 minutes.

Two of the other three Valley Christian backs, senior Luke Snyder and sophomore Austin Schuder, punched in the team’s two TDs in the second quarter. Neither had a carry in the second half.

“We (got) in a spot where we had to throw the ball,” Valley Christian coach Jake Petersen said. “We weren’t in rhythm. Just made some key mistakes that couldn’t get us in spots that we needed to be.”

Burr, who returned after missing last week’s 49-7 rout of Fountain Hills, did not miss a beat by matching a season-high three passing TDs and posting a season-best 76.5 completion percentage (13 of 17) for 200 yards.

Burr shook off his lone interception at 11:51 in the second quarter by finding junior Hyatt Lang for a 49-yard score only nine minutes later. He was particularly locked in out of the break, completing his first eight pass attempts and seeing three result in gains of at least 13 yards.

“(The team) continues to improve week after week in their fundamentals,” Carlson said. “There’s lots we can learn from this game up front and all across the board, but (the offensive line) did a really nice job of protecting Tyler.”

Solid offensive-line play also paved lanes for Webb. Gilbert Christian’s rushing leader (855 yards, 11 TDs in seven games) upped his five carries in the first half to 19 in clock-churning third and fourth quarters. Webb turned in 78 of his 106 yards in the second half, featuring a nine-yard TD with 8:29 left in the game to push the Knights’ edge to its final 21-point margin.

Gilbert Christian (4-3, 1-0) will have its bye week before traveling to Bourgade Catholic (0-6, 0-2) for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Oct. 18.

Valley Christian (3-4, 2-1) also will take next week off before traveling to Paradise Honors (2-4, 0-2) for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Oct. 18.