COLORADO SPRINGS — Monarch hoarded the football like an unruly Thanksgiving guest hogs the remote control.
But Pine Creek’s offense made the most of a rare chance to switch the channel, then the defense simply yanked the plug out of the wall.
Ryan Warner’s 24-yard touchdown pass to Riley Whitmore with 21 seconds left in the first half negated two quarters of clock-munching for No. 2 Monarch, and No. 3 Pine Creek used the momentum to post a 20-0 victory Saturday at District 20 Stadium. It secured the school’s first trip to the Class 4A championship game, this weekend at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
“It was huge,” said Warner, who scored the game’s final touchdown on a 1-yard plunge in the fourth quarter. “We knew what their defense was doing, but their offense was running out the clock. So we knew we had to score. And we did.”
Take away that first touchdown and there’s no telling which of these teams would be lining up against No. 1 Valor Christian (13-0) in the title game. Of course, that could also be said of three defensive stops on fourth down that helped the Eagles (13-0) earn their third shutout in as many playoff games.
The final stop was the biggest.
Monarch’s Geoff Clary intercepted a Warner pass on the second play of the fourth quarter and returned it to Monarch’s 46-yard line. Still trailing by just a touchdown, the Coyotes (12-1) were very much in the game.
After one Monarch first down, Pine Creek’s defense handed the ball back to its offense after thwarting another fourth-down attempt.
A few plays later, Josh Beacham, who ran for a game-high 145 yards on 21 carries, broke loose for a 45-yard touchdown that gave the Eagles breathing room.
“That’s not a come-from-behind offense,” said Pine Creek coach Todd Miller, whose team has outscored its three playoff opponents 96-0. “With the way they play, we thought two scores would be hard for them.”
Monarch 0 0 0 0 — 0
Pine Creek 0 7 0 13 — 20
PC — Whitworth 24-yard pass from Warner (Collison kick). PC — Beacham 45 run (Collison kick). PC — Warner 1 run (kick blocked).
