WSSARIZONA

CHANDLER, AZ – 3A Round Valley did not disappoint after their 2 hour trip to face Seton Catholic in Chandler. In a 30-14 Elks victory, ‘27 QB/FS Kage Finch, dominated rushing the ball, going for 104 yards and 3 touchdowns with just 14 carries.

Round Valley dominated the game on the ground, rushing for 224 yards as a team, averaging 6.8 yards per carry on the night. Though they were strong rushing the ball, they struggled moving through the air, passing for just 74 yards on 28 attempts.

29’ RB/DL Jaxon Crick was a standout in this game as well for the Elks, breaking off a 60 yard run and totaling 80 rushing yards on just 5 attempts. Alongside his offense, Crick posted 6 total tackles including 2 sacks on the night.

For Seton Catholic, the offense moved the ball well on the night, averaging 4.6 yards per carry and throwing for over 200 yards as a team. ‘27 ATH Patrick Connelly led the way for the Sentinels with 112 all purpose yards and a receiving touchdown coming with it. Connelly also had the longest reception of the game, a 54 yard strike thrown by ‘27 QB Brady Hayes that resulted in Connelly’s touchdown.

While the Sentinels moved the ball, their offense wasn’t consistent, and the game was lost through the turnover battle. Along with an interception, Seton Catholic had multiple turnovers on downs towards the end of the game that ended in points for Round Valley, who had a consistent rushing offense the whole game.

The ground and pound efficiency of the Round Valley offense carried the load and burned clock in long drives that often lengthened their lead. Finch’s duality on the field isn’t new, totaling over 2800 yards on the season last season. His ability to create plays out of nothing on the ground allowed the Elks to drag on drives for 9+ plays and give the streaky Sentinel offense less of the ball. After a week 0 win with many bright spots, the Elks look ahead on their season in anticipation to best their 13-1 record from the season prior.