By Brittany Bowyer
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SCOTTSDALE — It was an emotional night of football for #14 Chaparral and #19 McClintock, as each team was fighting for a spot in the 5A playoff bracket. In a win-or-go-home situation, McClintock was able to shock nearly everyone, pulling off a 28-14 comeback victory.

“I’m still kind of in shock,” McClintock Head Coach Nick Offenberger said. “Nobody gave us a shot tonight. Nobody gave us a shot tonight, and that’s kind of been our story all year. We had eight or nine kids transfer out before the season started, all big contributors on our team. I think everybody kind of wrote us off... This is a big win for our program.”

“I thought we really, really struggled on offense,” Chaparral Head Coach Trace Carroll said. “We had five turnovers, but I’d really call it six with the blocked field goal. We got stopped four times in the red zone. Not a recipe for success for us.”

For McClintock, the Chargers were seeking their first playoff win since 2008. Meanwhile for Chaparral, the Firebirds were looking to prove they’ve laid the foundation to build the program back up to a perennial playoff team.

Things got off in favor of the Chargers early, as they won the toss and elected to defer.

The Firebirds got the ball first and were able to make their way down the field, but stalled out in the red zone. Electing to attempt a field goal on fourth down, but the kick by sophomore Dom Voyer bounced off the crossbar of the goal post and was no good. With 5:44 remaining in the first quarter, things were still tied at zero.

On Chaparral’s following possession, a huge pass from sophomore Ryan Trocki to senior Alec Greenwald would move Chaparral from around midfield to the red zone. From there, Trocki was able to connect with senior Jax Breslo for a touchdown. Voyer’s kick was this time blocked by the Chargers, making the score 6-0 with 11:10 remaining before the half.

The remainder of the second quarter was a defensive battle by both teams, as neither team gave up anything before the half.

Coming out of halftime, McClintock got the ball and after making some halftime adjustments, were quickly able to score. Sophomore quarterback Seaton Lobato was able to connect with sophomore Jackson Whitaker on a deep pass he took in for a touchdown. The kick from sophomore Charles Ripley was good, making it 7-6 with 10:10 remaining in the third quarter.

Chaparral’s following drive would end on an interception by junior Milo Abeita with 7:14 remaining in the third. However, McClintock’s possession would be short lived, as Lobato was picked off by senior Dylan Heyninck with 5:48 left in the third quarter.

Going into the fourth quarter, it was still anyone’s game at 7-6.

“We knew we’d have a four-quarter heavyweight battle with Chaparral,” Coach Offenberger said. “We knew we had our work cut our for us. I’m very excited, especially with us being down 6-0 at half, the resiliency we had the second half to pull it off.”

McClintock picked up some momentum to start the fourth quarter with an interception by senior Aidan Whitaker with 10:49 remaining to play.

The Chargers were able to take over possession and make a push down the field. They capitalized on the drive on a pass from Lobato to Jackson Whitaker with 6:49 remaining. The Kick from Ripley was good, extending the lead to 14-6.

More trouble ensued for Chaparral on the following drive, when a fumble was recovered by McClintock at the Firebirds 23-yard-line. On the first snap of McClintock’s drive, freshman Damian Aguirre took the ball in for a touchdown. Ripley’s extra point attempt was good, making the score 21-6 with 5:29 remaining.

Things got even worse for Chaparral on the following drive, as they’d once again fumble the ball away to McClintock. With 5:15 remaining in the game, the Chargers took over posession at the Firebirds 11-yard-line, but not before the lights would mysteriously cut out on the field.

“I was kidding with Coach Carroll, I said, ‘I’ve seen major league before. I know what you guys are doing here,’” Coach Offenberger said.

After a 15-minute delay, the game was back up and running, but McClintock was too hot to be stopped at this point.

Leading the late push for the Chargers, Aidan Whitaker lined up to take the snaps and would continue to power his way into the endzone for six. Ripley’s kick was up and in, pushing the lead to 28-6 with 3:16 remaining.

With just 2:16 remaining to play, Chaparral was able to answer with a touchdown on a pass from senior Danny Goddes to sophomore Nick Trocki. The Firebirds went for two and were able to convert, but it would be too little too late. McClintock would be able to run out the remaining time on the clock to go on and pick up a 28-14 victory.

“Credit to Coach Offenberger, I thought they had a great game plan defensively,” Coach Carroll said.

For Chaparral, the season came to a crushing close tonight, but Coach Carroll mentioned how monumental this group of seniors has been to helping reboot the program.

“They bought into everything that we’re doing,” Coach Carroll said. “We totally changed the weight room. We totally changed what we do in the offseason when it comes to 7-on-7 and everything like that, and they just believed in us... We’ve changed the culture and playing meaningful football in November, which we haven’t done here at Chaparral in five years.”

Meanwhile for McClintock, the Chargers will now prepare to face a strong Notre Dame Prep team on the road next week.

“We’ve got our work cut out for us against a good Notre Dame team, and we’re excited for the opportunity,” Coach Offenberger said. “We’re gonna get back at it tomorrow morning and get to work.”

Brittany Bowyer is a Report for America corps member, covering sports for Independent Newsmedia in Arizona. Report for America places talented journalists in local newsrooms to report on under-covered issues and regions.