GREENWOOD VILLAGE — By the time the Regis Jesuit offense first took the field Friday night, the Raiders had a 12-0 lead thanks to a scoop-and-score by senior defensive end AJ Smallwood on a mishandled Cherry Creek punt and then a pick-six by senior corner Patrick Roe on the subsequent Bruins possession.
It was an early advantage the No. 5 Raiders never relinquished, riding tough defense the rest of the way to a 25-20 victory over No. 1 Cherry Creek in each team’s much-hyped season opener at the Stutler Bowl.
“The momentum shifted back and forth in the game, and our defense made a couple huge plays throughout the night that kept us in front until we were able to find our rhythm offensively,” Regis Jesuit coach Danny Filleman said. “That’s really what got us the win.”
The Bruins didn’t get on the board until junior Mac Willis’ 23-yard field goal late in the second quarter cut the Raiders’ lead to 12-3 in a first half in which neither team’s offense found the end zone. The Raiders then struck first in the second half via a Kiahn Martinez 3-yard touchdown run that extended Regis Jesuit’s lead to 19-3.
But Cherry Creek fought back. Junior quarterback Alex Padilla found junior wideout Marcus Miller for an 18-yard touchdown strike late in the first quarter, and the subsequent two-point conversion cut the Regis Jesuit lead to 19-11.
Another field goal by Willis with 8:20 to play in the fourth quarter made it 19-14, and the momentum in the stadium had decidedly shifted toward the home team.
But Martinez — who stepped up into the primary tailback role after senior DJ Jackson left the game in the first half because of an injury — and the Regis Jesuit offensive line controlled the clock down the game’s final stretch, limiting Cherry Creek’s offensive opportunities and never yielding the big plays the Bruins needed to complete the comeback.
“We hung in there, but had three turnovers and fumbled the ball away inside the 20-yard line in the first half,” Cherry Creek coach Dave Logan said. “You just can’t make early mistakes like that against a good team, and they’re plenty good — they’re not going to lose many games this year.”
The Raiders were able to finally put the game out of reach thanks to a grinding 11-play, 80-yard drive that ate up over seven minutes of clock and was punctuated by another Martinez touchdown run with just over a minute to play.
“It was the first time starting for several of those guys on our line, so all game we were coaching them up and making adjustments on the sideline,” Filleman said. “That made that last drive even more of a gritty drive for these kids, because we came up with a long one when we needed it most.”
Regis Jesuit (1-0) is in action next Friday at home against No. 4 Mullen, while Cherry Creek (0-1) hosts Doherty that same night.
