No. 3 American Fork Celebrates Homecoming With Top-Five Victory Over Lehi
Sep 15, 2023, 9:37 PM | Updated: 9:45 pm
Lehi vs. American Fork football (Photo by Mariluz Cook, KSL Sports)
(Photo by Mariluz Cook, KSL Sports)
AMERICAN FORK – The No. 3 ranked American Fork Cavemen celebrated homecoming with a big victory over their rival and previously undefeated opponent in the No. 4 Lehi Pioneers.
American Fork Blows Out Lehi On Game Night Live
The Cavemen hosted the Pioneers at American Fork High School on Friday, September 15.
American Fork blasted Lehi, 62-28.
FINAL.@cavemanfootball wins big over @LehiFootball, 62-28, in this week's KSL Sports Game Night Live game of the week! 🏈#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/uD3zy3uEKP
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
The Cavemen’s victory snapped a 24-game winning streak by the Pioneers.
The Pioneers got the scoring started as they found the end zone on a pass from Jett Niu to Mays Madsen on the opening drive of the game.
Lehi strikes first! 🏈@MaysMadsen7 finds the end zone to give the Pioneers a 7-0 lead early in the first.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/byzQuO9rRk
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
American Fork quickly responded with a touchdown drive of its own. The Cavemen marched down the field and tied the game with a touchdown run by Dax Watts.
American Fork responds! 😤@DaxWatts punches it in on the goal line to even the score at 7.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/YjLiDs7Syb
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
On the following possession by the Pioneers, Watts picked off Niu and returned it to the house for a 35-yard pick-six.
Watts’ pair of touchdowns came in less than 30 seconds of game time and handed American Fork its first lead of the night.
Two touchdowns in less than 30 seconds for @DaxWatts 😳
Watts intercepts Lehi and takes it to the house to give the Cavemen a 14-7 lead.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/BrmcahiCzJ
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
The Cavemen regained possession late in the first quarter and went to work again. Jacob Eardley easily crossed the goal line on a run and American Fork stretched its lead to 20-7.
American Fork building its lead 👀@JacobEardley44 scores but the extra point is missed to keep the score at 20-7.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/k2N7t3UTp2
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
Early in the second quarter, Eardley found paydirt again. The running back powered his way across the goal line and recorded his second touchdown of the first half. Eardley’s score pushed American Fork’s lead to 27-7.
Two Cavemen with 2 TDs in the first half! 💪@JacobEardley44 keeps his legs moving to power through the defense and cross the plane. #GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/6ChgKEFRBf
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
With their backs against the wall, the Pioneers needed an answer on the road. Devaughn Eka was the answer.
Lehi looked Eka’s way and he responded. Niu connected with the sophomore in the end zone and the Pioneers cut into the Cavemen’s lead.
Lehi comes back with their own TD 🔥@Devaughn_Eka takes a hit but still scores to drop the American Fork lead to 13.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/48Ph7yCZQm
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
Less than two minutes later, Eka reached the paint for a second time, this time with an 11-yard touchdown run.
Eka’s second score trimmed American Fork’s advantage to 27-21 with a little over six minutes remaining in the third quarter.
The Pioneers are storming back ⛈@Devaughn_Eka runs in his second TD of the night to make it a one-possession game!#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/tVvoILr4LD
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
With 5:24 to go until halftime, Paul Latu forced a fumble by the Cavemen and Carson Wren recovered the pigskin to get the ball back for the Pioneers.
However, Lehi was unable to take advantage of the turnover.
With under 30 seconds left in the first half, Eardley punched the ball into the end zone for his third score of the evening. The run extended American Fork’s lead to 33-21.
American Fork adds to its lead before the half! 🏈@JacobEardley44 follows his blocks for a third touchdown.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/utzhwnyWdT
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
Lehi managed to get into field goal range in the closing seconds of the second quarter. However, the Pioneers missed a field goal attempt and went into the break trailing by 12 points.
Lehi misses a field goal just before the half to keep the score at 33-21 🏈
Second half coming up next!#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/yDWTZFgIQq
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
2:03 into the second half, American Fork capped off an impressive drive to start the third quarter. Dylan Story connected with Josh Andrus for a 32-yard Caveman touchdown. The score put American Fork in front of Lehi, 41-21.
A few seconds later, Lehi’s Eka fumbled and the Cavemen recovered the loose football in Pioneer territory.
The Cavemen strike first in the second half! 💥@JoshAndrus80 catches the pass from @DylanStory6 to take a 41-21 lead.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/B61MgnwfNk
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
With 8:51 remaining in the quarter, Eardley powered his way across the goal line for his fourth touchdown of the contest. It extended American Fork’s advantage to 48-21.
American Fork starting to pull away 👀@JacobEardley44 with ANOTHER touchdown to give the Cavemen a 48-21 lead.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/RfUAm0HlWI
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
With 3:35 left to play in the third quarter, the Cavemen put the game on ice. American Fork added another touchdown to its total, a 46-yard scoring pass from Story to Davis Andrews.
.@cavemanfootball up big at the end of the third 3️⃣
@LehiFootball's streak is in jeopardy as they trail American Fork, 55-21, with one quarter left.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/00W9sSWTu2
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
Two minutes into the final quarter, Story hit Max Edwards for another Caveman touchdown. Story’s toss made it 62-21 on the scoreboard.
American Fork keeps it rolling 🏈@EdwardsMaximos caps off a quick drive from the Cavemen with a touchdown.#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight @KSLSportsRewind @JeremiahJensen @mariluzcook @SSylvester55 pic.twitter.com/Gt0RXL3Ncm
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) September 16, 2023
In the final minute of action, the Pioneers added a score to make it a final score of 62-28.
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With the result, the Pioneers fell to a 5-1 record on the season and the Cavemen improved to 6-0.
Lehi’s next game is at home against the No. 2 Skyridge Falcons on Friday, September 22 at 7 p.m. (MDT). American Fork’s next contest is on the road against the No. 11 Lone Peak Knights on September 22 at 7 p.m.
Game Night Live in Week 7
Next week, Game Night Live will travel to Salt Lake City’s East High School for a meeting between the Leopards and Brighton Bengals.
Kickoff between Bengals and Leopards is slated for Friday, September 22 at 7 p.m. (MDT). The game will be broadcast on sports.ksl.com and the KSL Sports app.
You can find and stream (for free) our entire slate of high school football games right here.
KSL Sports’ Jeremiah Jensen, Stevenson Sylvester, and Mariluz Cook will be on the call and have full coverage of the contest and other games throughout the high school football season on Game Night Live.
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