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THE SUNDAY SANTAN SUN NEWS | DECEMBER 19, 2021
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Chandler falls short to Saguaro in Open championship BY ZACH ALVIRA Sports Editor
It’s the first time since 2015 Chandler’s football program tasted defeat in the postseason. On Saturday, Dec. 11 at Sun Devil Stadium in the Open Division state championship game, a late touchdown and interception by Saguaro allowed the Sabercats to dethrone the Wolves as the kings of Arizona high school football. Chandler coach Rick Garretson was blunt with his team’s 20-15 loss in the title game, crediting Saguaro coach Jason Mohns for his team’s performance. “They were better than us tonight,” Garretson said. “We just couldn’t finish it off. Jason (Mohns) did. That’s the end of it.” Chandler set the tone with its first drive of the game that shaved more than 7 minutes off the clock. The Wolves took the ball down the field with ease, using a balanced attack behind the arm of Blaine Hipa and legs of Anyale Velazquez. Jeremiah Moore, another running back for the Wolves, capped off the drive with a 4-yard touchdown run to take an early lead. Saguaro responded, however, with a long drive itself. Javen Jacobs, who plays the role of a swiss army knife for the Sabercats, dove for the pylon on a jet sweep to put Saguaro on the board. Much like it did initially, Chandler again came right down the field. A big throw from Hipa and impressive catch by senior wideout Kyion Grayes put the Wolves in position to re-take the lead. Senior quarterback Kenneth Cooper, who has been used by the Wolves in short-yardage goal line situations, punched it in. With every blow that Chandler dealt, Saguaro responded. Despite an interception thrown by Sabercats’ quarterback Devon Dampier on their next drive, the defense forced a turnover on
Saguaro senior safety Thomas Dechesaro (32) and junior linebacker John Butler (23) hold on trying to bring down Chandler senior running back Anyale Velazquez (20), in the AIA Open Class Football State Championship game, Saturday, December 11, 2021, at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)
downs. That led to Dampier connecting with Jacobs on a 24-yard touchdown pass before the end of the first half. “I knew we had it,” Dampier said. “I knew we would win after that, we just had to trust our defense.” Saguaro didn’t allow Chandler to do much in the second half. The Wolves were held to just 110 yards of offense. After Chandler’s go-ahead field goal in the third quarter, Saguaro again regained the lead as Dampier found sophomore Jaedon Matthews wide open in the middle of the field. Hipa was picked off with two
Saguaro senior linebacker Zack Macchiaroli (42) drags down Chandler senior quarterback Blaine Hipa (13) as he throws, in the AIA Open Class Football State Championship game, Saturday, December 11, 2021, at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. (David Minton/Staff Photographer)
minutes remaining. Saguaro began to celebrate. “I told our guys that they’ve won five in a row, and we weren’t supposed to be here,” Mohns said. “All the pressure was on them. I told them if we just keep hanging around, they were going to make a mistake. We make a play, pressure is on them and finally we pull one out.” Hipa finished 12 of 23 for 166 yards and two interceptions. Velazquez led the way for the Wolves on the ground with 152 yards on 21 carries. The loss for Chandler is unfamiliar territory. The last team to beat Chandler in the postseason was Desert Ridge in 2015. Before this season, Chandler’s last loss to an in-state team was in 2017. The Wolves’ 2022 class was one littered with talent and has three championships under their belts, including Grayes — an Ohio State commit — and Iowa State commit Quaron Adams. “This was a special class,” Garretson said. “This is the first playoff game we’ve lost in a long time. It’s all good. Congratulations to Jason. They deserve it.” Saguaro’s quest to the Open Division state championship began two seasons ago when the Sabercats fell in the inaugural title game to Chandler. Last year, Saguaro was forced to forfeit its Open Division quarterfinal matchup due to a COVID-19 outbreak among the team. The Sabercats were written off this season on several occasions. Many believed Sierra Canyon, a perennial contender in California would knock them off in Scottsdale earlier this season.
Saguaro won. Some believed the Sabercats would fall to 4A Cactus in the Open Division quarterfinals this season. They won that, too. And behind the legs of Dampier, Saguaro stunned No. 11 nationally ranked Hamilton in the semifinals. Dampier’s legs once again kept many Saguaro drives alive against Chandler on Saturday, rushing for 129 yards on 22 carries. But his two touchdowns both came through the air as he finished 12-of-17 for 156 yards, including the most important one to Matthews at the end of the game. “I knew that play was coming,” Matthews said with a smile. “We worked on it all week. Me and Devon had a connection. Looking back on it, I knew we had won.” The Open Division was arguably created to pin Saguaro, a consistent champion at the 4A level, against teams of Chandler’s caliber. Now two years later, the Sabercats proved they can hang, and beat, the top teams in the state. And they had to go through Hamilton and Chandler to do it. The last team that faced and beat both blueblood programs in back-toback weeks was Mountain Pointe in 2013. Just like the Sabercats this year, the Pride won a title. “We figured if we were going to win this game it wouldn’t be pretty,” Mohns said. “It feels surreal. I asked if this really happened. We beat Chandler and Hamilton back-to-back. We took down the blue bloods of Arizona in back-toback weeks. I’m pretty damn proud.”
