A mere 12-yard buffer separated Lone Peak from Lehi in the Knights’ 24-21 victory over the Pioneers Thursday in Highland.
Lehi’s final drive ended a dozen yards from the end zone as the clock expired on a Pioneer incomplete pass, leading to a Lone Peak celebration that saw students burst onto the field.
With half a minute to play, Lehi junior wide receiver Legend Glasker, who finished the night with two touchdown catches, reeled in a 53-yard catch to put the Pioneers at the Lone Peak 12 yard line.
That was where the Knights made their stand, forcing an incomplete pass before a Lehi zero-yard, clock-burning inbounds catch left little time for the visitors to decide on their next move.
In a frantic attempt to beat the clock, the Pioneers quickly ran another play and threw another incomplete pass as time expired.
“I love our defense so much,” Lone Peak head coach Bart Brockbank said. “Even though I want our offense to … be able to kneel it out, man, watching our defense come through in clutch, it’s been good this year.”
The Knights forced a Lehi fumble and interception on two of the Pioneers’ first three possessions, with both turnovers coming well within Lone Peak territory.
“Our defense has been big about … takeaways this year,” Brockbank said. “I thought the defense did a really good job.”
The Knights’ offense did a good job too, starting quickly with a 55-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Kepa Niumeitolu to senior tight end Isaac Staley on just its second play from the line of scrimmage.
Lehi responded in the second quarter with two touchdowns in less than four minutes to take a 14-9 lead but Lone Peak regained the lead on a 39-yard touchdown grab from senior wideout Owen McNeel with a minute to play before halftime. Staley then found Niumeitolu on a trick pass play for a two point conversion.
Staley was in a quarterback battle with Niumeitolu before moving to tight end, making his accurate two point conversion pass to the Knights’ starting quarterback come as little surprise to the Lone Peak sideline.
Niumeitolu and Staley weren’t done, as the quarterback and tight end hooked up on a 4-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter to give the Knights a 10-point advantage.
“They’ve started to click really good together,” Brockbank said of Niumeitolu and Staley. “They’ve really had to work just to kind of get that timing down, but tonight it was really good.”
When all was said and done, the Knights found a way to force the Pioneers into errors and then capitalize on those mistakes. A botched hold on a Lehi field goal attempt to end the first half loomed particularly large in the 3-point game.
Lone Peak forced Lehi into another missed opportunity when it stopped the Pioneers on fourth down on the Knights’ side of the field at the start of the fourth quarter.
Lone Peak will look to remain opportunistic when it travels to Saratoga Springs for a Wednesday matchup with Westlake to end the regular season next week. Lehi will return home to welcome Pleasant Grove that same evening.
Both contests are set to begin at 7 p.m.
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