Nevada Appeal
FALLON - The Carson High football team was far too much for Fallon to handle as the Senators rolled to a 48-0 win over the Greenwave on Friday night at Churchill County High School.
Carson dominated play in every facet of the game, rolling to leads of 21-0 after the first quarter and 41-0 at halftime. The Senators' offense finally slowed down in the second half when the second string unit took the field. A running clock helped to end the game quickly.
"We have executed well all year," Carson coach Blair Roman said of his offense. "There was only one game we didn't execute and we lost. The key next week (against Douglas) is to execute offensively."
Carson moved the ball at will in the first half and Fallon couldn't do anything about it. The Senators scored on five-of-eight first half possessions and were stopped only by themselves, including once on a misplayed lateral and once on a fumble.
Dylan Sawyers scored first on a 34-yard run, capping a 46-yard, six-play drive with 9 minutes, 7 seconds to play in the opening period.
Moments later, a long punt return by Robert Figeroua set the Senators up at the Greenwave 14, and Carson scored on Sawyers' four-yard run. The first of two interceptions by Josh Peacock put up at the Fallon 29, and Blake Plattsmier finished the drive with a 1-yard run. With 2:57 left to play in the first quarter, Carson was in front 21-0 and the game was essentially over at that point.
The Senators onslaught continued in the second quarter. Mark Sinnott capped a 55-yard, 5-play drive with a 31-yard run around left end where he ran right over a Greenwave tackler. A short while later, Peacock stepped in front of an Andy Fiske pass along the sideline and took it back 20 yards for another touchdown. Ean Witter had been perfect on extra points up to then, but this time his kick sailed wide right, and the score was 34-0 with 7:57 to play until halftime.
Carson's final scoring drive of the first half was filled with penalties. A face mask and a pass interference penalty on Fallon, along with two holding calls, a false start and a personal foul against the Senators, kept the ball moving back-and-forth for a while, but Carson finally scored on a 31-yard pass down the middle from Plattsmier to Sawyers. The extra point made the score 41-0 with 4:02 still remaining on the first half clock.
"I talked with them at halftime and told them how proud I was of their
season," Roman said.
While Carson piled up the yards, Fallon couldn't move the ball at all against a stout Senator defense that plugged up the middle and had too much speed for Fallon to gain anything outside. Greenwave running back Alvin Juris - who ran for 169 yards last week against South Tahoe - was repeatedly stopped by the Senators defense.
"We knew coming in Juris had the potential to beat us. He's a quick kid, a tough kid and he runs hard," Roman said. "But our defensive line dominated."
Late in the first half Fallon finally found a way to move the ball. The Greenwave switched from their I-formation, two-wide receiver base offense to their double-tight end, wishbone set that is normally used only near the goal line. By running up the middle with plays that resembled rugby scrums, the Greenwave actually moved 30 yards, but eventually lost the ball on downs.
"We were trying to get something going offensively," Fallon coach Brooke Hill said. "We knew they were really good up front and we were going to struggle in our base offense. So we went to our goal line offense and we got a little bit out of it."
Fallon moved the ball some more with their wishbone set in the second half but were never able to come close to the goal line. With its second unit offense playing, Carson capped the scoring on a 54-yard run by Robert Figeroua with 2.8 seconds left in the third quarter.
"They are a good team," Hill said. "They are superior to us. They are bigger, faster and stronger and have more athletes and more kids."
Carson now turns its attention to arch-rival Douglas. The rivalry game takes place Thursday at Carson High. Although both teams will enter the game with winning records and playoff spots secured, Roman said season records don't mean a thing in a big rivalry game.
"It will be a battle," Roman said.