Before the season starts, the new regime at Sunrise Mountain appears to have a crucial tally in the win column.

Sunrise Mountain is wide awake now.

Outlook: Gilbert coach Jesse Parker knows what he has in quarterback Kyle Caballero.

With Liberty and Sunrise Mountain averaging more than 44 points per game there was a chance the rivals would turn Friday’s football game into a track meet.

Sunrise Mountain girls volleyball team has had trouble putting opponents away throughout the year, said coach Tony Gale.

It's hard to believe a team that has won 11 of it's last 14 is still building confidence.

Powered by more than 300 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns from Mesa Desert Ridge senior Chris Heldore, the host Jaguars (2-2) defeated Sunrise Mountain (1-3) 52-10 in a 5A-II nonregion game Friday.

For a coach who saw his squad give up 63 points at home, Sunrise Mountain Head Coach Will Babb was relatively happy. "We competed. I was really happy with the effort from start to finish. My guys could have tanked halfway through this game, but they kept fighting out there and that's all you can ask for as a coach. "What it comes down to is a loss is a loss. We could have come out here and scored 50 or 55 points (against Desert Ridge High School) and still lost. What's the difference?" It seemed the Mustangs (2-2 in 5A Divison II play) were playing catch up from the opening kick Thursday night in their 63-36 loss. After the Jaguars won the toss and received the kick off, taking it up to the 24 yard line, a facemask penalty landed the ball on the 29. From there, Desert Ridge (2-2) drove down the field in eight plays, using a rushing attack that found holes up the middle and pushed the defensive line back. The Jaguars' first two runs went for 26 and 24 yards. Three different rushers touched the ball on the drive, but it was junior running back Chris Heldore who punched the ball into the end zone on a sweep to the right side, breaking a tackle at the three yard line and scoring the first of what would be seven offensive touchdowns. The early hole Sunrise Mountain fell in got deeper when, on its first offensive play, sophomore quarterback Tyler Brown's pass was picked off by senior corner back George Jones who returned the pass 33 yards for a touchdown, making it 15-0 with little more than two minutes off the clock as the Jaguars converted their two-point conversion. However, the Mustangs answered back with a 9-play, 65-yard drive. The strong field position was a gift from the Jaguar kicker who slipped as he made contact with the ball, sending it just 15 yards where senior Colton Marichalar fell on it. From there, Sunrise Mountain regained its composure and used the run to set up a pair of dump passes, as Brown was flushed from the pocket. For Brown, that was a recurring theme on the night. He was sacked three times and was 6-for-9 with 72 yards passing, a touchdown and two interceptions. Junior wide receiver Jimmy Kerr paced the Mustangs with 44 yards on two catches and caught Brown's lone touchdown pass, a seam route that split the corner and safety, leaving him wide open up the middle. "We needed to work on our pass protection tonight," Brown said. "Desert Ridge kept coming and we had trouble stopping them." Brown said he also missed a few plays with a head injury midway through the second quarter. Sunrise Mountain came out of halftime and looked prepared to mount a come back despite being down 36-16. They led off the second half with a three-play, 58-yard drive, thanks in part to senior Danny Lange's 39-yard touchdown run down the left side, which included a nifty spin move at the 30-yard line that sprung him free of the Desert Ridge defense. The scamper cut the Jaguars' lead to 36-23. But the Mustang defense was unable to hold Desert Ridge, who did not have a punt on the evening, as they marched down the field using primarily senior quarterback Josh Cain's arm, capping the drive with a 31-yard pass to senior Carl Curtis, making it a 42-23 game (Desert Ridge missed the extra point). Cain finished with 269 yards passing. He completed 20 of 27 attempts and tossed three touchdowns. He also rushed for three scores. Heldore led all receivers with five catches and 87 yards. Despite the Jaguars' quick answer, the Mustangs grabbed momentum again with eight minutes to play in the third quarter. Senior Alex Weathers took Desert Ridge's kick off at the 12 yard line, broke through a hole near the 25-yard line then cut toward the left sideline and open field. His kick off return touchdown cut the Jaguars' lead to 42-29 (Sunrise Mountain missed the extra point) with a little more than eight minutes to play in the third quarter. However, the little tide that trickled back to Sunrise Mountain, rushed away on the ensuing kick off. Junior Chris Jamison took the ball at his own 5 yard line, found a hole in the wedge and broke down the right sideline for their own kick off return. It was almost not to be, though. The Mustang's Roman Fernandez's first kick bounced at the 20 yard line but squirted left and rolled out of bounds. Rather than taking the yardage, the Jaguars accepted a second kick, and turned that into six points. "That is a good football team (Desert Ridge) out there," Babb said. "We didn't play as well as we could have, but we could have played it close and still loss." Not only did the teams combine for 99 points, they also had 811 yards of offense (Desert Ridge ? 461, Sunrise Mountain ? 340) and 460 yards rushing (Sunrise Mountain ? 268, Desert Ridge ? 192). Lange led all rushers with 120 yards on 16 carries and three touchdowns. The Jaguars' leading rusher was Heldore who had 76 yards on 10 carries and 1 touchdown.

Despite a solid relief pitching performance by third baseman Uriel Munoz, Paradise Valley couldn't muster enough offense, losing to Peoria Sunrise Mountain 10-2 in the 5A Division II baseball semifinals Thursday at Scottsdale Stadium.

Despite a solid relief pitching performance by third baseman Uriel Munoz, Paradise Valley couldn't muster enough offense, losing to Peoria Sunrise Mountain 10-2 in the 5A Division II baseball semifinals Thursday at Scottsdale Stadium.

Sometimes little brothers fight back.

No one really likes a tie.

In a four-year span, from 2006-09, Sunrise Mountain won eight football games.

The Sunrise Mountain High School Basketball Academy starts next week and runs throughout the summer. Camps offered are as follows:

In Tuesday's Best of the West tournament quarterfinal, a veteran Sunrise Mountain baseball team taught a younger Valley Vista squad one of baseball's oldest lessons — on contending teams, defense doesn't cool off with the bats.