Broomfield – Leave it to Dustin Albright and the Faith Christian Eagles to give their final regular-season opponent just enough hope to make it hurt in the end.
The top-ranked and undefeated Eagles watched as two waves of momentum swept up Holy Family and its fans before Faith Christian exploded in the second half Friday night for a 42-14 Class 2A Metro League victory at Mike Gabriel Stadium.
It was the first time Faith Christian, which has outscored opponents 343-40 in nine contests, has allowed more than seven points in a game this season.
“Our coach (Blair Hubbard) is a genius,” Albright said.
Albright carried nine times for 145 yards with touchdown runs of 3, 13 and 53 yards, and he opened the second half with an 89-yard kickoff return after taking a reverse handoff from Tyler Funk.
“I’ve never seen a hole as big as I did on that kickoff. It’s kind of hard to miss a hole that big,” Albright said.
The win gave defending state champion Faith Christian (9-0, 8-0) a positive push into the playoffs, while Holy Family (6-3, 5-3) will need to rely on a wild-card berth to avoid missing the postseason for the first time since 2000. Kent Denver and surprising Platte Canyon earned the remaining Metro spots behind Faith Christian.
“Coach told us that this would be a good team and a good game for a springboard into the playoffs,” Faith Christian center Ryan Pinson said.
For a couple of fleeting moments, it looked as if the Tigers might pull off the upset and redeem themselves after a 34-7 loss in the state final a year ago.
After Albright capped a 47-yard drive with a touchdown on the Eagles’ first possession and Funk found John Hegarty for a 28-yard score on their second drive, Holy Family jumped right back into the game.
Tigers quarterback Patrick Chappell hit Mike Langfield in the back of the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown to make it 12-7 at halftime.
But Albright knocked the wind out of Holy Family’s sails for the first time with his 89-yard sprint on the opening kickoff of the second half.
“The kick return after half killed us. … We knew (Albright) would be the go-to guy; we just didn’t get helmets on him,” Tigers coach Mike Gabriel said.
Still, the Tigers benefitted from a Faith Christian fumble two series later that set up Holy Family 3 yards from the end zone. Tim Stockhausen plowed up the middle on the first play to put the game back within reach, 20-14 with 6:58 remaining in the third quarter.
And that’s when the Eagles turned into the football cyborgs they have played like all season.
After Stockhausen’s score, Faith Christian needed exactly two plays – a 69-yard run by Albright and an 18-yard scoring run by Funk – to increase the lead. On the Eagles’ next drive, Albright broke free for a 53-yard score to seal it.
“That’s our goal, that’s what we work so hard for is to see him running down the field like that,” Pinson said.
Faith Christian 6 6 23 7 – 42
Holy Family 0 7 7 0 – 14
FC – Albright 13 run (kick blocked). FC – Hegarty 28 pass from Funk (run failed). HF – Langfield 26 pass from Chappell (Glynn kick). FC – Albright 98 kickoff return (Albright run). HF – Stockhausen 3 run (Glynn kick). FC – Funk 18 run (Albright run). FC – Albright 3 run (Roche kick). FC – Albright 53 run (Roche kick).
