Dave Maxwell Reece Thornton of Pahranagat Valley breaks into the open for a long gain. He is the team rushing leader with 406 yards at this point of the season.
Just like any good predator, the Panthers of Pahranagat Valley pounced quickly on the Thunderbirds of Indian Springs last week and carried away the catch in the form of a 46-0 shutout.
Preston Higbee fired three touchdown passes and ran for another.
He was five-of-six passing for 105 yards and had two carries for 15 yards, plus a touchdown against the winless Thunderbirds (0-4, 0-2).
Stockton Maxwell caught three passes for 63 yards and two scores. Jesse Jones, Reece Thornton, and Kobi Fiatoa all caught touchdown passes for the defending state champion Panthers (4-0, 3-0).
Thornton had a touchdown run for PVHS, and Fiatoa had three tackles and an interception.
It marked Pahranagat’s 15th consecutive win over Indian Springs since 2004. Only once have they failed to score 40 or more points.
The Panthers scored very quickly in the first quarter, from scrimmage on Higbee’s 45-yard touchdown pass to Maxwell in the first 25 seconds.
They struck again five minutes later on a 30-yard pass by Higbee to Jones.
The next two possessions for Pahranagat in the quarter saw them drive to the 10-yard line where Higbee had a rushing touchdown at 2:18 and after an Indian Springs turnover, Higbee connected with Maxwell for his second touchdown on a 10-yard pass.
Pahranagat led 30-0 after the first quarter.
They added two more scores in the second quarter a – 15-yard run by Thornton and Fiatoa’s 10-yard touchdown reception from backup quarterback Gage Davis. The Panthers (4-0, 3-0) played most of the second string the second half but did not score.
This week, the team makes a five-and-a-half-hour trip for a non-league game at Carlin.
The Railroaders and Panthers played last year in Alamo, just about at this same time in the season, with Pahranagat winning, 62-6, after racing off to a 48-0 halftime lead.
Following the Carlin game, the team has a week off. They will be using the time wisely to prepare for an apparently very strong Spring Mountain team this year. Pahranagat plays at Spring Mountain on Oct. 19.
The Eagles (3-1, 1-0) devastated an otherwise good Trona, California, team last week at Spring Mountain, 73-0.
They were sparked by quarterback Da’Juan Brown who rushed for 116 yards and three scores on just four carries. He also completed two of three passes for 56 yards and two touchdowns.
