Liberty dominates Hamilton in marquee game at Peoria

By Richard Smith
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A 31-point win in what was expected to be a close showdown does not boil down to one drive.

But one drive opened the door for No. 3 Liberty's surprising rout of top ranked Chandler Hamilton Oct. 23 in Peoria. The Lions raced 77 yards in 45 seconds with no time outs, scoring a touchdown on a 26-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Jason Haines to senior wide receiver Carter Rothe with 10.7 seconds left.

Liberty (7-1) took a 17-7 lead into halftime and put the game of the week away in the third quarter, racing to a 38-7 lead and winning by the same score,

“It was a big moment. We didn’t really know about that drive. We had no time outs so if you don’t get a play right away you just get to half,” Liberty Coach Colin Thomas said. “We got a penalty and then we did a good job stopping the clock. Then Carter did a great job on the third down play and really gave us momentum going into the half.”

The crucial drive came after a Lions defensive stop halted Hamilton's momentum. The Huskies scored with 5:24 left in the half on a 57-yard touchdown pass from  junior quarterback Jax Sculley to sophomore receiver Roman Oliver. 

Hamilton (7-1) picked up a quick defensive stop and regained possession at its 42 with 1:54 remaining.  Junior running rack Devontae Roebuck dashed for 19 yards on first down.

But Sculley's next completion lost three yards and Oliver dropped another potential touchdown throw.

“I thought the biggest thing was we didn’t let them run the ball very effectively. Their running backs are really good and they do a great job up front with the scheme they run. But we did a tremendous job getting them into third down,” Thomas said. “That could have flipped the momentum, if they’re up 14-10.”

Instead, the momentum only built for the home team. Liberty drove 86 yards in less than four minutes to start the second half. Haines started the march with passes of 18 yards to senior receiver Evan Adamczyk and nine yards to Rothe.

From there, the Lions were ground bound. Senor running back Jayden Sanchez dashed for 33 yards, then  ran right up the gut for a 14-yard touchdown five plays later.

“Carter Rothe made a hell of a catch and we were in the locker room and got fired up. We smelled blood in the water,” Sanchez said. “My offensive line was great. They got a good push. All I needed was to just make one cut and go.”

A successful point after bumped Liberty's lead to 24-7 with right minutes left in the third quarter it would soon grow.

Hamilton fumbled the ensuing kickoff and senior safety Cannon Collins recovered at the Huskies 30. In less than two minutes, the Lions led 31-7 following a two-yard touchdown run by junior back Gavin Lombardi.

“I felt like the game was in our hands, especially coming out after half and getting that fumble recovery on the kickoff. I think that just created the snowball effect,” senior cornerback Jackson Streeter said.

Liberty added an exclamation point seconds before the third quarter ended.

Junior running back Chase Ochoa, familiar with the Huskies from playing a starring role for Chandler in an Open Division semifinal win, gashed the defense for five, then nine.

The Lions finished with 276 rushing yards on 45 carries. Sanchez lead the way with 126.

Haines finished the quarter running around the end for a 15-yard touchdown. Message sent.

“I think if you can run the ball effectively you can win games. As much as football has changed, that’s never going to change. That allowed us to be aggressive in spots where we wanted to be and then milk the clock,” Thomas said.

His team set the tone on the first play from scrimmage, forcing a Huskies fumble. Streeter recovered at the Hamilton 21.

A post-play unsportsmanlike conduct flag knocked the Lions back to second down and goal from the 21. They settled for a 32-yard field goal by senior kicker Koen Broadley.

“It just gave us momentum from the start,” Streeter said. “Getting the ball to them immediately and then at least getting a field goal was big for us.”

The defenses dominated early. Then Haines lofted a ball over the shoulder of fellow sophomore Jayden Sellers and the big tight end rolled for 55 yards.

On fourth and 1 from the Hamilton 4, Sanchez ran for two. On the next play he again took the direct snap two yards for a touchdown.

Streeter said the close-knit senior class shows a unity that filters down to the large groups of sophomores and juniors. Friday, that bond and the hunger to return to the top of Arizona high school football helped the Lions dominate the top-ranked team.

“It’s not always easy and there’s growing pains. After the Basha game, we obviously knew we had to get a lot better. We’ve made some strides and we’ve got a long way to go, still. Our schedule doesn’t get any easier the next two weeks,” Thomas said. “But I’m proud of them. This type of night doesn’t happen if the guys aren’t all in.”

Richard Smith
Senior News Editor | Glendale & West Valley Preps

rsmith@iniusa.org

Richard Smith has been with Independent Newsmedia since 2016, and worked at a Sun City-based news outfit covering the Northwest Valley for 22 consecutive years.

An NAU alum and lifelong Arizona resident, Richard began as a copy editor and page designer at Surprise Today and the Daily News-Sun, then rekindled his love of sports writing by taking the reins on West Valley Preps in 2008.

For most of the mid-2010s he was the Surprise editor and West Valley Preps reporter. Now he’s the West Valley Preps Editor and Surprise Associate Editor.

As COVID restrictions slowly lift, Richard is cautiously optimistic he will visit book stores, football fields and gyms again this fall.