A week after being shutout by North Sanpete the Emery Spartans returned to the field and delivered a dominating performance in a 30-6 win over the Democracy Prep Academy Blue Knights Friday night in Castle Dale.
Playing against an out of state school for the first time, the Spartans were dominate from beginning to end. The defense kept the Blue Knights off of the scoreboard until the final minutes of regulation, while the offense found its stride in the second half.
“I thought our kids executed well on both sides of the ball even though we left a lot of points out there in the first and second half,” said head coach Jon Faimalo following the win. “They were athletic, and we knew they would be coming in. But I felt good about the way the kids played.”
Holding a 3-0 lead at the end of the opening quarter, the Spartans created more space as sophomore Dane Sitterud scored on a 13-yard run with 6:10 to play in the first half. The lead remained 10 entering the third quarter.
It took only four plays for the Spartans to score in the second half as quarterback Tyler Stilson connected with Colton Jeffs on a 38-yard touchdown pass. Starting under center for the first time since his sophomore season, Stilson continued to show more signs of comfort and confidence as the signal caller.
“You could see more confidence this week because it was just different. He was prepped and the ball looked a little bit different coming out of his hand,” Faimalo said when assessing Stilson’s play. “He’s going to get better as the season goes on. He was prepped and you could see it.”
The 16-point advantage increased just 39 seconds into the fourth quarter as Sitterud found the end zone again, this time on a five yard run to advance the score to 23-0.
Playing a bend-but-don’t-break role, the Emery defense finally allowed points when DPAC quarterback Shamon Warren found Greg Jones in the end zone for a touchdown on fourth and 10. Still in control 23-6, the Spartans answered back with one more score as Koalton Curtis crossed the goal line on a three yard run with 4:23 remaining in regulation.
Friday’s opponent presented a different challenge for Emery. Playing in its first high school football game, the Las Vegas based Democracy Prep squad was loaded with athleticism and speed. With very little information available the game planning aspect was unique throughout the week.
Even with the difficulties in preparing for Friday’s game the Spartans responded to last week’s loss with fire despite dealing with a long list of injuries. Now 2-1 on the season, the possibility of starting the campaign with three wins in four weeks exists heading into next week’s road game with Union.
“I would be ecstatic if we could go into Union and steal one,” said Faimalo when asked about next week’s game. “Having what we’ve dealt with on injuries, I don’t think we could ask for anything more than 3-1. Even at 2-1, I feel good about where we are at because a tough game like last week can set you back, but our kids responded tonight.”