Estrella Foothills secured a road victory against Deer Valley, 21-7, to claim back-to-back 4A Copper Sky Region championship titles and a spot in the 4A playoffs on Friday night. 

The pressure was high as the Skyhawks were ranked No. 16 and the Wolves were ranked No. 17. Region titles do not provide automatic berths but with a 16-team bracket, the region title and a playoff bid came down to this game.

“I am really happy I get to experience this again,” said Wolves senior tailback AJ Horne. “I love this feeling”.

Estrella Foothills (8-2, 5-0) jumped in as the #15 seed in 4A, the program's first postseason game since 2020.  The Wolves travel to #2 Chandler Arizona College Prep on Nov. 15.

Deer Valley (9-1, 4-1) plummeted from #16 to #19 in the final rankings, somehow falling behind two teams with 5-5 records. The Skyhawks are the first 9-1 team in 4A-6A to not receive a playoff berth since the AIA adopted this rankings formula in 2012.

The Skyhawks got a rough start with seven minutes left in the first quarter, as a defensive personal foul gave the Wolves the advantage to start their six-play drive at the 31-yard line. 

Estrella Foothills made its way to the end zone after senior quarterback Hone Wray passed to junior Will Davis for 15 yards, placing them at the 4-yard line with four minutes left. Wray scored the Wolves' first touchdown at 3:30 in the first to lead 7-0.

The Skyhawks had a response as senior Tyler Lebaron passed to senior C.J. Williams for a 28-yard touchdown with less than 39 seconds left in the first quarter. 

Going into the second quarter, Estrella Foothills picked up their momentum attacking the pockets but received a penalty for holding with 7:49 left, pushing them back to the 29-yard line.

Then, the Wolves took the chance to pull out a trick play. Wray tossed the ball back to sophomore Shawn Ellison for a 29-yard touchdown pass to junior Danny Ostrander to lead 14-7. 

“He (Ellison) played one play today and he scored a touchdown,” said Wolves coach Mike Spencer. “He was a good little athlete. He made a big play when it counted.”

With 3:33 left in the second quarter, the Skyhawks worked to get in Wolves territory as Lebaron passed to Coleston Paxton for 19 yards at the Wolves 36. The pressure from the Estrella Foothills defense made it difficult for the Skyhawks to get momentum.

Skyhawks coach Dan Friedman said going into halftime, Deer Valley was discombobulated.

He said they lost a key player who was ejected from the game because “he tried to punch the ball out and they (referees) said they threw a punch at a kid.”

So we just had to adjust, make sure that we weren’t focused on the referees,” said Friedman. “Take care of our own business because we have been in this position before where we are down half and we have come back in one game.”

Deer Valley came back strong to start the third quarter, Lebaron passed to Paxton for 31 yards to move to the 33. But, three plays later the Wolves aggressive defense forced a fumble that was recovered by junior Lorenzo Ruelas. 

Soon after, the Wolves took advantage of the turnover for Wray to score his second rushing touchdown for a score of 21-7 with 5:07 left in the third. 

Estrella Foothills maintained possession of the ball that continued into the fourth quarter, but gave Deer Valley some hope. Williams had an interception his own 41 with 11:49 left and bolted to Wolves territory for 25 yards. 

But the Skyhawks could not convert for a first down. On the next drive, Deer Valley responded by forcing Estrella Foothills to punt the ball. 

Deer Valley launched a 14-play drive that placed them at the 2-yard line but fell short. In the last seven plays, the Skyhawks were sacked four times, running the clock down to end the game.