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QB Kaleb Honea (1) throws a pass during the Bulldogs’ 34-13 victory last Friday night. Kelli Luberda | Ledger
Dylan Duran and Vanessa Campos were crowned Homecoming King and Queen at Queen Creek High School.
Kelli Luberda | Ledger
Southeast Valley Ledger
The Queen Creek football team honored its seniors and welcomed back alumni in the best way it could last Friday night: with a win.
The No. 3-ranked Bulldogs defeated No. 4-ranked Westview 34 – 13 in a game that affected both teams when the new Division II rankings were released on Tuesday, Oct. 27.
Senior quarterback Kaleb Honea scored four touchdowns – two passing and two rushing – and junior running back Jace Koester, who made his first-career varsity start, rushed for 117 yards on 34 carries. Koester had only 47 carries this season entering Friday’s game.
“We’re excited about our kids at Queen Creek,” head coach Travis Schureman said after the game. “We’ve always had that next kid that’s been waiting in line for his turn and Jace did a heck of job (Friday) running the ball for us so we’re excited about what he brings to the table.”
After serving as the primary backup to injured starter Gavin Danielson, Koester showed up big in his first start of the season and credited the teammate he replaced for his success in Friday’s win.
“Gavin has been a great mentor for me this whole season,” Koester told theLedger. “When he went down I definitely knew I had big shoes to fill, but he kept me motivated through practice and told me going into this game I would get a lot of carries. I just went out there and played as hard as I could.”
Friday’s game started with a scoreless first quarter before senior Zach Glaess opened the scoring on the first play of the second quarter with a 48-yard field goal to give Queen Creek a 3 – 0 lead.
Glaess would later closeout the scoring in the first half with a 28-yard field goal, but it’s what happened in between that allowed the Bulldogs to take control of the game.
Westview committed two turnovers on consecutive possessions after Glaess’ first field goal and the Bulldogs cashed in on both.
After the first, Honea connected with receiver Ian Woods on a 67-yard touchdown pass to make it 10 – 0. Honea scored on a 1-yard touchdown run after the second turnover to make 16 – 0.
The Bulldogs scored 19 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a commanding lead into the locker room at halftime.
Westview, which averages more than 300 rushing yards per game, was limited to fewer than 150 by the Bulldogs’ defense.
“(We) had a great game plan this week and we worked the defense hard (during practice),” Schureman said. “We talked about being disciplined and doing the little things. We took it a little personal that some people said they were going to run the ball down our throats because we like to play a physical type of football.”
The Knights were able to get back in the game in the third quarter, scoring 13 points on consecutive possessions, but Honea would answer for the Bulldogs in the fourth quarter.
His second rushing touchdown of the game was followed by a trickeration two-point-fake-field-goal PAT run by Glaess to extend the Bulldog’s lead to 27 – 13.
And later, Honea found senior tight end Jordan Ackert on a 10-yard touchdown pass and catch. The score was Ackert’s first of the season.
The Bulldogs travel to Poston Butte this Friday to close out their regular season. Schureman said he expects the Broncos to ready for the cross-town rivalry game despite their winless record.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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