McClintock falls to Apache Junction

Apache Junction beat host Tempe McClintock 34-10 Friday in a 4A-I Desert Sky Region football game.

SLIDESHOW: Friday night football action

“We did exactly what we needed to do, to give ourselves a shot,” said Apache Junction coach Rich Milligan.

The game between the Prospectors (8-3) and the Chargers (5-5) was a playoff preview of sorts.

Both teams were in the top 11 in the power-points rankings going into the final game of the season, and both had secured playoff berths.

They were vying for the opportunity to play at home in the first round of the state playoffs next Friday.

“Now it’s just a matter of how the power points fall,” Milligan said.

Depending on the outcome of several other games, Prospector fans could be watching their team play in Apache Junction next week.

Milligan’s jokes in the post-game huddle and the beaming smiles glued on Prospector faces may have made Friday night’s win seem like a cakewalk.

It wasn’t.

After scoring on three of four possessions in the first half, Apache Junction sat on a 16-3 lead at halftime.

At the break, starters Justin Ferman and Steven Hughes were sidelined with minor injuries. Both were missed on both sides of the ball, and Ferman had already rushed for 58 yards and a touchdown.

To start the second half, the Chargers put together four first downs, which was more than they had in the entire first half, and scored their first touchdown.

On the ensuing drive, Apache Junction was forced to punt.

The game was suddenly close at 16-10 for the first time since the opening minutes.

After a 27-yard run by Robert Walker that put McClintock in Prospector territory, the Chargers looked as if they might take the lead.

Then on fourth and 5, the Prospector defense got just enough pressure on McClintock quarterback Eric Urry, who was forced to make a pass behind his halfback.

Apache Junction punted again on the first play of the fourth quarter. McClintock fumbled on the punt return, and it became the Prospectors’ ball on McClintock’s 27-yard line.

Three plays later, Shane McCullen ran the ball in for a touchdown.

“We responded,” Milligan said. “We came back and had a good defensive stop, and we took care of business once we got the ball back.”

“That’s really important … because we don’t have the type of team where, generally, we just go out and overpower people,” Milligan said. “So we have to accept the peaks and valleys throughout the course of the game.”

The Prospectors didn’t seem to miss their starters after McCullen’s touchdown. They scored twice more before the fourth quarter ended.

“The other kids went out, and they did a good job,” Milligan said. “They did what they needed to do.”

The Prospectors outrushed McClintock, 345 to 120 yards. They also led time of possession, 31:32 to 16:28.

“Everything was working for us,” McCullen said. “We did what we wanted to do.”