Higley players enjoy the postgame of their region-clinching victory over Seton Catholic (AzPreps365 photo)

 

The 4A Desert Sky Region foortball title was on the line. But not for long Friday night.

Sizzling Higley scored on the second play and lit up the scoreboard for 43 first-quarter points in defeating Seton Catholic, 50-0, on Higley's Senior Night.

The bios and honoring of 28 Higley seniors during pregame took longer than knowing or realizing the outcome of this game featuring No. 4 Higley and No. 6 Seton. Higley improved to 9-1 and won its seventh game in a row. Seton had its seven-game winning streak broken and heads to postseason hoping to hang on to first-round home game with its 8-2 mark.

"It feels great to be region champs," Higley coach Eddy Zubey said. "These seniors have been region champs all four years here -- freshman, sophomore, junior and senior. We got out fast. The only game we got out faster was Cactus."

Higley did a little of everything in its torrid first quarter that resulted in a running clock with 54 seconds left in the quarter. The Knights racked up 301 yards of offense in the period. Five different players scored. Four of the touchdowns covered 40 yards or more.

The stars of the game? The usual suspects for Higley. Senior slot back-running back Draycen Hall ran for TD (67 yards), passed for one (53 yards) and caught a TD pass (96 yards, about 90 of it after the catch). He also had a punt return for a TD early in the third period called back due to a penalty. 

Junior quarterback Spencer Brasch ran for a TD (41 yards to open the scoring) and passed for four more (Hall, 6-yarder to Ty Robinson and initiated a hook-and-ladder TD hitting Jaxen Gibbons who pitched it to trailer and tackle eligible Matthew Hicks for a 19-yard tally. The final score was a 14-yard strike to Keith Wesley early in the third period to close the scoring.

Higley's defense has allowed just 39 points in its winning streak -- three less than it gave up to Saguaro in its Week 3 loss to the Sabercats. Two fumble recoveries by Higley set up two of the first-quarter scores.

The Knights limited Seton to 37 yards offense in the first half. HIgley reserves foiled a last-minute drive by Seton to eclipse the shutout. Anthony Natale's interception thwarted that drive. Adrian Eastman's interception midway through the second period near the red zone stopped Seton's other best possession.

Despite the loss, Seton will be going to the playoffs for the first time since 2014. The Sentinels under coach Gary Galante have improved their win total each year (two in 2015, four in 2016 and eight now heading to postseason).