VarsityXtra

Chandler Seton quarterback Justin Sieczkowski will start against Williams Field this week after missing Friday’s game against Scottsdale Notre Dame with a sprained ankle.

He suffered the injury two weeks ago against Scottsdale Coronado.

Sieczkowski is 66-of-128 for 1,001 yards, 13 touchdowns and three interceptions this season in three games this season.

Coach Rex Bowser said the team is happy to see its quarterback return.

“They know what he’s capable of doing,” Bowser said. “They have great confidence him in.”

After high hopes entering the year, the Sentinels are 1-3 to start the year, with a crucial game against Williams Field coming up on Friday.

“We need to get this thing turned around,” Bowser said.

Paradise Valley running back/linebacker/placekicker Jake Brown will miss his second consecutive game this week with a sprained ankle.

Brown wants to return to action, but coach Donnie Yantis is being cautious so as not to lose him for a significant period of time.

Top defensive lineman Austen Salazar was injured in Friday’s game against Cave Creek Cactus Shadows and will miss 3-4 weeks, also with an ankle sprain.

With multiple top players out with injuries, the Trojans are focused on treading water until their health improves.

“That kind of stuff happens,” Yantis said. “We’re in maintain mode. We’d rather lose the battle than lose the war.”

Taylor Walstad is dying to play. We know his parents are as well, and even Arizona State would like to see one of its commitments for next year back on the field.

It’s been a methodical but progressing recovery and rehab for Walstad after he suffered a knee injury in the opening game against Mesa Skyline.

Walstad is back at practice this week, but Wolves coach Jim Ewan called it a “40-60″ proposition his star running back would see the field.

That’s being generous. Even if he gets back on the field this week against Chandler Hamilton, it won’t be for many plays. It’s a pretty rough transition going from a month on the bench to game speed against the No. 1 Huskies.

Chandler has a bye next week, followed by Mesa Red Mountain, Phoenix Desert Vista, Mesa Mountain View and Phoenix Trevor Browne.

The Wolves could sweep those four games going into the playoffs, especially if Walstad is playing and close to 100 percent (which he should be).

We know this week is a big game and that the Wolves have never beaten Hamilton, but Walstad’s health for the next 6-8 weeks is more important than beating Hamilton in Week 6.

Five or ten snaps wouldn’t be a bad thing, but even though another two weeks of practice would make him go stir-crazy, Walstad and the Wolves would be wise for the lack of wear.

Gilbert Perry football coach Preston Jones said the suspensions of 11 players last week are over, so it’s all hands on deck for their toughest game of the year to date at Scottsdale Chaparral.

Perry will get a few starters back due to the end of sanctions. Also quarterback Chase Richardson, who was limited in practice last week due to nagging bumps and bruises, is practicing again. The Pumas also got top rusher Tauren Darnell back last week for a few snaps and Darnell responded with his fourth TD of the year.

Perry will need all the bodies it has to make a game of it with the high-powered Firebirds.

Phoenix Mountain Pointe running back De’Andre Currie was named the Arizona Cardinals high school player of the week.

As he’s done all season, Currie had eight carries for 198 yards and four touchdowns last Friday in the Pride’s 69-14 win against Casa Grande.

Teammates Davon Jones and Zach Deitchman also topped 100 yards for undefeated Mountain Pointe.

Currie will receive a plaque on Wednesday afternoon.

Highland coach Pete Wahlheim earned coach of the week honors after the Hawks’ improbable comeback against Scottsdale Desert Mountain last week, in which they trailed 21-0 entering the fourth quarter but won, 28-27, on a touchdown and 2-point conversion in the closing seconds.

The Hawks (2-2) won their second consecutive game and face Gilbert Mesquite on Friday night.

In 4A-I, Apache Junction drops out of the top 5 after a loss to Cottonwood Mingus. Cave Creek Cactus Shadows continues its early-season run with a win over Paradise Valley, moving the Falcons up to No. 3 in the latest poll. Saguaro did enough to beat Cactus on Friday, setting up a much-anticipated 1-vs-2 matchup with Canyon del Oro in Tucson. Can the Sabercats stop Ka’Deem Carey? We’re going to find out.

In 4A-II, Paradise Valley has gone from No. 1 to out of the rankings in two weeks. Cactus Shadows knocked them out with an overtime victory this week. Start-up programs Liberty and Williams Field are knocking on the  door of the top-5, though both teams will need another win against a solid team to make the move.

4A-I
1. Canyon del Oro (5-0): A disciplinary issue kept Carey on the sidelines for a half against Nogales, but he wasn’t needed. I wonder if Carey did the same thing this week,would he have been benched against Saguaro?
2. Saguaro (4-0): The Sabercats showed some vulnerability against the run, but still won by 17 points against a good Cactus team. Let’s see what John Sanders has up his sleeve for the matchup with the Dorados.
3. Cactus Shadows (4-0): Those sneaky Falcons did it again with a double-overtime win over Paradise Valley. Cactus Shadows has to be the most resilient team in the state and is turning into a legitimate threat in 4A-I.
4. Cienega (4-1): The early loss to Cactus Shadows quieted talk about the Bobcats, but they have played well since. Willie Willis is becoming a big-time running back and Trent Simon is so dangerous at wide receiver.
5. Sabino (4-1): The Sabercats had an easy win over Marana, and really won’t get challenged until the season-ending game against Canyon del Oro.

4A-II
1. Notre Dame (4-0): The Saints got a break by playing Seton without its standout quarterback, Justin Sieczkowski, but it’s doubtful Notre Dame would have had much trouble, anyway.
2. Santa Rita (3-1): The Eagles stomped Rio Rico 69-0. There aren’t any statistics from the game available on Maxpreps, but I’m going to go ahead and assume they were a tad lopsided.
3. Mingus (4-0): I contemplated putting the Marauders into the rankings last week, but an eight-point win over Prescott Valley Bradshaw Mountain didn’t inspire enough confidence. A two-touchdown victory over Apache Junction on Friday, though, jumped them up to No. 3.
4. Buckeye (3-1): The Hawks rolled Coconino, and very well could finish the season with only one loss.
5. Greenway (3-1): Games against Apache Junction and Paradise Valley the next two weeks will show if the Demons are for real.

Debate, adulation and anger surfaced this week toward Show Low coach Randy Ricedorff (once a Mesa Westwood state champion as a player and a Warriors assistant). This after he left his son, Rathen, into the second half to break the Arizona record for passing touchdowns (9) despite a 52-0 halftime lead against Chinle.

The situation and ensuing debate has leaked out nationally, and I found several comments and thoughts from parties involved intriguing, to say the least (and apparently a few parties which weren’t involved, such as the mayor).

From the Rivals story:

They said: “Every kid that dressed played. That spoke a lot on their behalf. They made every effort to keep the score as low as possible. If they wanted to, they could have went three digits on us.” –Chinle athletic director Steve Troglia

I say: Seems like Troglia either believes that, or is taking the high road and not interested in getting into a pissing contest or war of words about the situation. It’s not about how many points Show Low could have scored (it probably could have been 80 or 90). It’s that, if the team’s starting quarterback is still in the game trying to throw touchdown passes for some boring record in a 52-0 game, then where is “every effort to keep the score as low as possible?”

They said: “I feel that people have the perspective that Show Low is not a class program,” he said. “You don’t like that there are people who were not at the game and go by hearsay. The perception is the problem.”   –Ricedorff

I say: He’s right in that perception is (or could be) a problem, but you leave yourself wide open to this when you’re throwing the ball with your starting quarterback midway through the third quarter. Why do we have to be at the game to believe you shouldn’t be throwing the ball to appease your kids who are clamoring for a record when it’s 52-0?  Some things are pretty black-and-white.

They said: “We know it’s going to be a blowout. Whether we run the ball or throw the ball is not going to make a difference.” –Ricedorff

I say: Not going to make a difference?  See “Perception”  above.

They said: “Obviously the game was a runaway, (but) if the other team is not complaining, I would think what our team did was fine.” –Show Low mayor Steve Fernau

I say: What does the mayor have to do with this story?  As opposed to, say, other schools who’ve been involved in a similar situation(s)?   Beyond that, why does one team have to openly complain for the other team to set its standards on sportsmanship?

An oldage:  What’s popular isn’t always right. What’s right isn’t always popular.

For all we know, Randy Ricedorff has been a quality, first-class coach for more than 20 years, and he can’t be blamed for the scheduling because most of that is beyond his control.

But this game offered a host of teaching moments about priorities that he whiffed on in a big way.

Running back Shawn Martin’s 334-yard, four-touchdown rushing day helped Scottsdale Coronado edge Chandler Seton, 34-32 on Friday in an important 4A-II East Sky Region contest.

But more than for the team, coach B.J. Pasquel was happy to see Martin do it for himself.

He has been a running back on varsity the past two seasons, but didn’t get a chance to get the bulk of the carries.  Travis Huff was the starter two seasons ago, and Kaylin Ashley took the majority of the carries last year.

But Martin was pegged the starter this year, and he came through for the Dons against Seton.

“It was great,” Pasquel said. “He’s one of the best kids around. It’s nice to see him have a big game.”

Martin could have another good showing this week against an Arcadia squad that has been prone to giving up yards on the ground.

Chandler Valley Christian lost a key component to their rushing attack last week when Blake Argo suffered a bone fracture in his leg and will be out 3-6 weeks.

Argo injured himself on the third play of the game against Scottsdale Christian, but continued to play, unaware there was a bone break. He had 13 carries for 46 yards in the Trojans victory.

He has 26 carries for 284 yards and five touchdowns this season for the Trojans, who are off this week.

Mesa Westwood is trying to rebuild its kicking game this week after losing kicker/punter Chris Lopez to a knee injury last week.
Coach Greg Mendez said Lopez was likely lost for the year with the injury. Lopez handled kickoff, punting and place-kicking chores as well as playing linebacker and some tight end. The Warriors hope to have a replacement that will suffice in time for Friday’s region opener at Gilbert Perry.
“We’ve been trying some guys out,” Mendez said. “We have to find a way to be decent with that part of the game.”