10/17/2009 football Edit

Liberty takes care of key Homecoming victory

Will Levi

NevadaPrepReport.com Publisher

The Patriots are keeping an eye on the prize as the team inched closer to making the playoffs in a 21-18 victory over Silverado. With Homecoming festivities, the Patriots held on in the end and appear to be headed where no prior Patriot team has ventured before.

The Skyhawks opened the scoring on the night with a Teran Madu-Jules 1-yard touchdown run midway thought the first quarter to take a 7-0 lead.

Early in the second quarter, the Skyhawks started to implode.

First, a 1-yard touchdown run by Niko Kapeli was set up by two Sam Tai long passes down field. The key play was an 18-yard third and long play by Tei to Anthony Norris that allowed them to keep the drive going keying a momentum change (7-7).

Minutes later, the Skyhawks would fumble an exchange from center that would give Liberty great field position. A 6-yard run by Teu Tai would cap the drive and allow the Patriots to get into the drivers seat with 8:11 left in the second (14-7).

Closing in on the half, the Skyhawks threw a pick that got the Patriot defense fired up but the interception would be overturned due to a horse collar call on the quarterback. A few minutes later Teu Tai would recover a fumble for Liberty and return it 25-yards to the 24-yard line. That would set him up for another score as they went into halftime up 24-7.

The second half was all Skyhawks as they turned up the heat opening with a 42-yard field goal to close the gap (21-10).

A missed tackle midway through the third quarter led to a 53-yard touchdown run by Madu-Jules. A Trenton Tipton-Matthew Hollen pass would add the two point conversion to get the Skyhawks within three points (21-18).

The Skyhawks would get one more chance to make a play for it facing a fourth and five but decided to go for the tying field goal with 5:56 left in the fourth but the 52 yarder was short.

From there, the Skyhawks couldn't get a defensive stop as the Patriots turned to its physical run game and locked up one of the biggest victories in program history.