Ironwood Ridge assistant coach Jeffrey Laos was drenched with water by a group of his players who celebrated his 70th birthday on Friday night on the very field he was part of many postgame celebrations when he was their age.
“Fifty-three years ago, I was playing on this same field for the Badgers,” said an exhilirated Laos, a member of Tucson’s state championship teams in 1970 and 1971.
From the visitor side of Gridley Stadium, he pointed to the illuminated red “T” on top of one of the buildings on campus.
“You see that?” he said. “I have that burned in my mind.”
Now, his heart and coaching philosophies he learned from Ollie Mayfield at Tucson High are with the Nighthawks.
After Laos spoke to the team, following its 30-27 victory over 5A Southern rival Tucson, a group of players doused him with water. One of the senior captains, Grant Dooling, approached him and gave him a hug.
It was just one of many good moves Dooling made all night.
Dooling had two interceptions, two touchdown receptions (including one of 68 yards) and recovered the onside kick late in the game in a matchup that could determine the 5A Sonoran title.
“I knew we had to come out strong; Tucson High is a great team … they were off a bye week and had extra time to prepare for us,” Dooling said. “I knew we had to come out strong. My mental game, I knew I had to be locked in on what I had to do. I knew I could do it.”
Ironwood Ridge (6-1, 2-0 in the 5A Sonoran) is the No. 6 team in the 5A while Tucson (4-2, 0-1) is No. 7.
No. 20 Mountain View (3-3, 1-0) and No. 21 Maricopa (4-2, 1-0) may have something to say about how the 5A Sonoran standings shake out.
But, for now, the Nighthawks are in command going into a bye week with a home game against Nogales (0-6, 0-2) scheduled when they return Oct. 25.
“We feel like Tucson High is the best team we’ve played so far, including Buena (which beat the Nighthawks 49-21 at Sierra Vista in the second week of the season),” Ironwood Ridge coach Dale Stott said.
He added that he was “really pleased” with Ironwood Ridge’s lofty ranking when the first power ratings were released Tuesday.
“It shows so much love and I appreciate it; I feel that we’re worthy of it, but we have to prove ourselves on the field and not just in our minds,” said Stott, who is 14-3 the last two seasons after going 1-9 with only one returning starter in his first season of 2022.
TALE OF TWO HALVES
Ironwood Ridge and Tucson High traded scores like it was a basketball game in the first half with Tucson leading 20-17 at the half.
Tucson High quarterback Derek Mesa engineered a touchdown drive on the Badgers’ first possession that started with a 57-yard pass to Joseph Romero. The possession was capped by a 2-yard scoring strike from Mesa to Romero.
Ironwood Ridge quickly struck back, taking only three plays to score. Jaiden Martinez’s 68-yard touchdown pass to Dooling, who eluded two tacklers on the way to the end zone, tied the game at 7 with 4:44 left in the first quarter.
Ironwood Ridge increased the lead to 14-7 with 7:46 left in the half on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Martinez to Dooling. The drive was aided Martinez’s 18-yard pass to Isaac Hyde and 23-yard completion to Matthew Kroner.
Martinez completed 15 of 28 passes for 236 yards with two touchdowns, while rushing 19 times for 54 yards (including a 20-yard touchdown run).
Grant Dooling had two INTs and two TD receptions, and also recovered an onside kick late, in No. 6 Ironwood Ridge’s 30-27 win over No. 7 Tucson in a 5A Southern showdown. pic.twitter.com/WPUESYXR8N
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) October 12, 2024
“We knew we had to win this game; they’re the seventh seed and we’re the sixth seed (in the 5A),” Dooling said. “We knew it was going to be a close game. I’m so happy right now.”
A 70-yard pass from Mesa to Noah Chanez led to a 3-yard touchdown run by Salpointe transfer Javion Wilson, cutting Ironwood Ridge’s lead to 14-13 with 5:04 remaining in the half.
Ironwood Ridge’s Isaac Rhonehouse made a 30-yard field goal to cap the Nighthawks’ next possession, giving them a 17-13 lead.
Mesa completed four straight passes, the last a 10-yard scoring strike to Jonathan Diaz to give Tucson a 20-17 lead with 1:07 remaining in the half. In that possession, Mesa also completed passes of 11 and 16 yards to Chanez and 28 yards to Romero before connecting with Diaz.
Mesa completed 19 of 37 pass attempts for 331 yards with three touchdowns and the two interceptions snagged by Dooling.
His three top receivers — Chanez, Romero and Diaz — each had at least 86 yards receiving. Chanez had eight receptions for 128 yards, Romero four for 88 yards with a touchdown and Diaz five for 86 yards and two touchdowns.
“Tucson High, hats off to them — they’re a great football team,” Stott said. “They did some amazing things, made catches I couldn’t believe.”
.@irhsfbbooster coach Dale Stott’s team goes into next week’s bye week with a big 30-27 win over host Tucson in a 5A Southern showdown of two top 10 teams in the 5A. IRHS rated No. 6 and Tucson No. 7. pic.twitter.com/NyhOWasrnR
— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) October 12, 2024
SECOND HALF A DEFENSIVE STRUGGLE
The second half contrasted to the first after Ironwood Ridge’s first possession resulted in Martinez’s 20-yard touchdown run to put the Nighthawks ahead 23-20 with 8:12 left in the third quarter.
The next five possessions resulted in punts, three for Tucson and two for Ironwood Ridge.
A big play finally occurred with Martinez’s 69-yard pass to Kroner that put the Nighthawks on the Tucson 4.
Hyde scored on a 4-yard run to increase the lead to 30-20 with 5:02 left.
Kroner, who entered the game leading all of Arizona with 700 receiving yards, finished with 120 yards on five catches. Dooling made four receptions for 92 yards.
“It was huge,” Dooling said of Kroner’s 69-yard reception. “We were struggling a little bit on offense and we knew we had to get the ball down the field. Matthew Kroner got open.”
69-yard pass from Jaiden Martinez to Matthew Kroner.
IRHS has ball on Tucson 7 https://t.co/k2V1tkGBCt pic.twitter.com/YjmYxvvgUR— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) October 12, 2024
Mesa put together one last scoring drive going from the Tucson 20 to the end zone in only 1:32. His 10-yard scoring strike to Diaz with 1:24 left cut the score to 30-27. Mesa connected with Diaz for 42 yards in the drive.
Dooling secured the victory by recovering Tucson’s onside kick.
“To me, Grant Dooling was the player of the game,” Stott said. “He had two interceptions and had numerous stops. He recovered that onside kick as well. He was tremendous.
“Matt Kroner made big plays when we needed gains. Jaiden Martinez as well, (defensive end) David Baba on defense … That senior leadership was important. They really lived up to all the hype.”
Tucson will host its next two games against Maricopa on Friday and Flowing Wells on Oct. 25 before travelling to Mountain View on Nov. 1.
HECK OF A TD CATCH
Jonathon Diaz hauls in a 10-yard pass from Derek Mesa with 1:24 left.
Tucson trails IRHS 30-27 https://t.co/ThbuwmeRzn pic.twitter.com/JJm7aSL0CG— Javier Morales (@JavierJMorales) October 12, 2024
MICA MOUNTAIN, WALDEN GROVE ON TRACK FOR BIG SHOWDOWN
Walden Grove won its fourth straight game with a 72-27 rout of Sahuaro on the road and Mica Mountain is now 6-0 overall and 1-0 in the 4A Kino after its 59-7 win over visiting Pueblo on Friday.
The Red Wolves (4-2, 1-0 4A Kino) will host Mica Mountain on Nov. 1 in what will likely be a game for the 4A Kino championship.
Mica Mountain will host CDO on Friday. The Dorados are the only team to beat Mica Mountain in a 22-2 stretch for the Thunderbolts over the last three seasons.
SAHUARITA IMPROVING BY LEAPS & BOUNDS UNDER JAKE ALLEN
Sahuarita was 0-10 and a welcomed opponent for teams in the 4A Gila last season. Not so, this season.
The Mustangs, under new coach Jake Allen, improved to 3-3 overall and 2-0 in the 4A Gila after wins over region foes Empire and Rio Rico on the road.
Sahuarita defeated Rio Rico 24-12 on Friday.
The Mustangs have a realistic chance to run the table in the next four games with three of their last four games at home, including at the end of the season on Nov. 8 against Douglas (3-4, 3-0). That game looks like it will be for the region championship.
PUSCH RIDGE KEEPS WINNING
Pusch RIdge is now 6-1 overall and 2-0 in the 3A South under fifth-year coach Kent Middleton after taking care of Morenci 29-0 on the road Friday.
The Lions are on a five-game winning streak heading into Friday’s non-region game with a Coolidge team that is 0-7.
The big game looming is Oct. 25 against Thatcher at Eastern Arizona College. The Eagles are 6-1 and 1-0 after beating Sabino 41-12 on Thursday night.
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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