Region 10 football: Snow Canyon hosts Dixie after triumphant victory over Desert Hills

Football season marches on in Week 8, as an unpredictable Region 10 season rolls on.

Snow Canyon dominated the second half against Desert Hills last Friday and hosts another tough test in Dixie this week. Both teams enter with solid wins last week.

The Flyers ran through the Warriors a year ago, but Friday night’s contest should be a much closer affair.

Following their loss to Snow Canyon last week, the Desert Hills Thunder travel to Hurricane to shake off last Friday’s performance. Hurricane enters with a three-game losing streak but played a promising half against Crimson Cliffs last Friday.

The region-leading Crimson Cliffs Mustangs head to Pine View to play the Panthers.

Following their narrow loss to Dixie last week, Cedar has a bye.

Dixie at Snow Canyon, 7 p.m.

The Flyers continue their road swing by heading out to face Snow Canyon on Friday night.

Dixie is coming off a thrilling 25-24 win over Cedar last Friday in Cedar City. Trailing by seven in the final minutes, Dixie drove the length of the field and scored on a Jalen Schultz pass to Jaxon Barben. Instead of going for the tie, Dixie rolled the dice and went for two. The decision paid off for the Flyers, who moved to 4-2 with the win.

Schultz had his best game of the year, throwing for 302 yards in the win and three touchdowns. His other two touchdowns went to tight end Mason Kesterson, who finished with 105 yards receiving.

For Snow Canyon, the Warrior defense stepped up big in the second half, forcing four turnovers in the final minutes to pull away from Desert Hills and earn a 42-20 win.

Snow Canyon’s defense scored two defensive touchdowns in the second half, and intercepted Noah Fuailetolo three times, including a pick-six by Kolter Stuart. Hunter Johnson meanwhile had 167 yards passing with two touchdowns. Johnson led the ground attack for the Warriors with 41 yards and a touchdown.

The Flyers and Warriors enter riding highs of two key wins to stay within range of Crimson Cliffs in Region 10.

Snow Canyon’s home-field advantage and its defense helped turn the tide against the Thunder last Friday night, and very well could play a part against the Flyers.

Prediction: Snow Canyon

Crimson Cliffs at Pine View, 7 p.m.

The Mustangs certainly didn’t get off to the start they wanted to against Hurricane last Friday, falling behind 10-0 in the first quarter.

The Region 10 leaders then exploded for a 49-17 win.

Steele Barben continued to build his case for Region 10 and potentially 4A Player of the Year with six touchdown passes. Four of those touchdowns went to Jordan Eaton.

Barben leads 4A in touchdown passes with 18 and passing yards with 1,507, guiding Crimson Cliffs to a perfect 3-0 in region so far.

Pine View hosts the Mustangs still searching for its first win of the year. The 0-5 Panthers had a bye last week and appear to have finally settled on Tyler Brown as the quarterback going forward.

Brown has six touchdowns and three interceptions as opposed to Abe Rosenlund’s two touchdowns and six picks.

Brown threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns two weeks ago against Cedar.

Crimson Cliffs has been dominating teams as of late, and a win on Friday would put them one step closer to a region crown.

Prediction: Crimson Cliffs

Desert Hills at Hurricane, 7 p.m.

The Thunder suffered a huge second in-region loss last week against Snow Canyon.

Following a triumphant return against Dixie the week prior, Noah Fuailetolo struggled enough to have Beau Wall come back in at quarterback for a couple of drives in the second half.

Trailing 14-13 at the half, Desert Hills was close through the first two quarters before the wheels fell off the wagon.

Despite Fuailetolo’s off night, it was another quiet yet impressive night from Tyden Morris.

4A’s leading rusher had 116 yards and a touchdown on 19 totes. The senior running back has rushed for 100 or more yards in five out of the Thunder’s seven games and had 98 against Cedar Valley.

In addition to his 722 yards on the ground, Morris has a 4A-high nine touchdowns.

Hurricane enters on a three-game losing streak but was able to hang tough with region-leading Crimson Cliffs through the first half. The Tigers led 10-0 at the end of the first quarter, and only trailed 21-17 at the half.

A field goal by RJ Wright in the first quarter snapped a two-game scoreless streak, and an Ethan Staples 23-yard run put the Tigers in the end zone for the first time since a 28-19 win over Pine View.

Prediction: Desert Hills

Sean Ellertson is a sports reporter for the St. George Spectrum & Daily News. To continue to support his work, please subscribe to The Spectrum. Follow Sean on Twitter @SeanEllertson.

This article originally appeared on St. George Spectrum & Daily News: Utah prep football: Snow Canyon Warriors hosts Dixie Flyers