Arvada — The ride may have been a bit bumpy, but Faith Christian is at least back in the saddle.
Quarterback Seve Carbajal completed 12-of-18 passes for 167 yards and two touchdowns, both to Sean Magnuson, and defensive lineman Noah Applegate recorded three sacks and a forced fumble as the defending state champion Eagles upended visiting Kent Denver 28-15 on Friday night.
Faith Christian (1-0) extended its winning streak to 15 games, but 14 of those were last season. This is a vastly different team, but the result was the same in the home opener.
“We had some first-game jitters, obviously,” Carbajal said.
Kent Denver (0-2) basically handed the Eagles their first score. The Sun Devils fumbled on the first play from scrimmage, an errant pitch that Robert Bray recovered on Kent Denver’s 17-yard line.
But Faith Christian appeared to stall, facing a fourth-and-10 on that same 17-yard line. The championship swagger was apparent, however, as Carbajal found Magnuson on a comeback route just inside the sideline for a touchdown.
“I just went to the pylon,” Carbajal said. “He was open and made a great catch.”
To prove luck was on its side, a bad snap on the PAT turned into a two-point pass play and an early 8-0 lead.
Kent Denver started slow offensively and had to punt on its three possessions following the fumble. But the Sun Devils’ defense created a turnover, with Jordan Lujan jumping on the loose ball, and the offense found a way to capitalize. Kendall Early connected with Mike Reilly for an 18-yard touchdown, and Early hit Dylan McCagg for the two-point conversion to tie the game at 8-8.
“We came out flat,” Reilly said. “One more quarter could have changed the game. I think we are going to take this and learn to come out right away. No waiting.”
The tide started to turn in Faith Christian’s favor when Andrew Tycksen took the ensuing kickoff 60 yards, down to Kent Denver’s 32. It wasn’t long before Carbajal and Magnuson hooked up again, this time from 20 yards out.
On its next possession, again with good field position, Faith Christian struck again. Craig Schultz set up the drive with a 39-yard punt return, and 43-yard pass from Carbajal to Tycksen led to a 5-yard run by Trent Vigil. Vigil finished with 91 yards rushing on 19 carries.
The Eagles suffered 11 penalties and four turnovers, including three fumbles. But a win is a win.
“We had a big turnover,” Applegate said. “We still have some proving to do.”
Kent Denver 0 8 0 7 — 15
Faith Christian 8 14 6 0 — 28
FC — Magnuson 17 pass from Carbajal (Vigil pass from Starck). KD — Reilly 18 pass from Early (McCagg pass from Early). FC — Magnuson 20 pass from Carbajal (run failed). FC — Vigil 5 run (Magnuson pass from Carbajal). FC — Vigil 1 run (kick failed). KD — Early 1 run (Reichert kick).
