Arvada – ThunderRidge might have a tough time becoming champions of the Mountain Plains League, much less winning a third straight Class 4A crown.
But one week after losing for the first time in 27 games, the Grizzlies showed second- ranked Ralston Valley the heart of a two-time defending state champion in a hard-fought 14-7 victory at the North Area Athletic Complex.
ThunderRidge’s defense twice stopped Ralston Valley inches away from the goal line on fourth down and forced a Mustangs fumble and turnover in the red zone en route to beating the last team that produced a win against the Grizzlies (in 2004) before Wheat Ridge knocked them off last week.
“This was really important for getting us back on track,” said ThunderRidge defensive end Zach Tiedgen, who made the initial hit that led to Payton McLachlan being stopped on fourth down from the 1-yard line with a little more than 5 1/2 minutes left.
“We were hungry. We had to come out and show what we’re made of,” added Grizzlies defensive back John Callahan, who upended Mustangs running back Josh Meneses on fourth down inches from the goal line in the second quarter.
The loss prevented Ralston Valley (4-1, 1-1 league) from possibly running the table until its Oct. 26 date with No. 7-ranked Wheat Ridge.
The win kept No. 8 ThunderRidge (4-1, 1-1) alive in the Mountain Plains race, though the Grizzlies will need some help.
“If you don’t convert, chances don’t matter,” Ralston Valley coach Matt Loyd said. “They were up to the task.”
“They lost last week and went back to work. We won last week and looked like we were riding on that.”
Playing without leading rusher Blake Rice, who has missed the past two games with a knee injury, Ralston Valley managed just 96 yards rushing, which included two sacks and a 13-yard loss on a high snap on a punt attempt.
But after spotting ThunderRidge a 14-0 lead in the first 16 minutes, the Mustangs pulled within a touchdown late in the first half behind the passing of Cameron Wright (7-of-12, 131 yards).
ThunderRidge 7 7 0 0 – 14
Ralston Valley 0 7 0 0 – 7
T – Nwoke 11 run (Jenkins kick). T – Pokryfke 54 pass from Faulkner (Jenkins kick). RV – Flageolle 10 pass from Wright (Mihalcin kick).
