Wildcats Are State Champs

By Greg Perkins
   When Joseph City went into Heber in the final week of the regular season and came away with a big win, they sent a clear message to the Mustangs. Last Saturday night in the 1A state championship game the Wildcats repeated that message, beating Mogollon 34-14 behind a strong running game.
   The Wildcats took their first lead on a 17-yard run by Zack Baldwin, which capped a 64-yard drive. The conversion failed, but Joseph City led 6-0 with 3:21 left in the first.
   The Mustangs came back and surged ahead on a one-yard plunge by J.T. Maner followed by a two-point conversion pass, giving Mogollon an 8-6 lead.
   The Cats didn’t trail for long, though, as Stephen Solomon picked up 71 of his 160 yards on a long touchdown run down the sideline. He then tossed the conversion pass to Zack Baldwin, putting the Cats back on top 14-8.
    Mogollon tied the game again late in the first half on a seven-yard scoring run, but the failed conversion run left the score knotted at 14-14. On their final possession of the second period, Solomon again raced into the open field, sprinting 49 yards for his second score of the night, helping his Cats take a 20-14 halftime lead.
    At the start of the third period the Wildcats forced a Mogollon turnover, which gave them great field position. It didn’t take the Cats long to take advantage as Zack Baldwin scored on a 35-yard run. Tracy Poudrier connected with Remington Baldwin for the two-point conversion and Joseph City doubled up the Mustangs 28-14 with just over five minutes left in the period. Remington Baldwin added an insurance score with less than two minutes left in the game on a 12-yard run for the final score of the night.
    First year head Coach John Bryant and his Wildcats came into this season with one goal, to win the state title. With the exception of a two-point win over Valley Union in the second round of the playoffs, the Wildcats dominated every team they faced this year, winning all other games by at least 32 points while posting their 11-0 record.
Mogollon        0 14 0 0 14
Joseph City     6 14 8 6 34