Gila Ridge comes away with OT win at Havasu

Gila Ridge quarterback Mike Pancrazi ran the ball less than five total yards in overtime but it was worth eight points and a Hawks victory.

Gila Ridge defeated Lake Havasu 29-28 at Lee Barnes Stadium Friday in Gila Valley Region action.

Havasu (4-7, 1-4) and Gila Ridge (3-6, 2-2) both scored in the extra period. Starting from the 10-yard line, the Fighting Knights got in the end zone immediately when quarterback Paul Lake ran right up the middle for the score. Homero Rueda's extra point was good and gave Havasu the 28-21 lead.

Gila Ridge got the ball down to the 2-yard line on a pair of runs by Javier Bon Jr., a 5-yard run and another for 2-yards. On third down, Pancrazi faked the handoff and scampered right for the score.

Instead of going for the tie and another pair of tries from the 10, the Hawks lined up for the 2-point conversion and despite the Knights' protest that there was a fumble at the goal line, the officials ruled Pancrazi had possession as he broke the plane for the win.

"It felt good," Hawks coach Jay Denton said. "We were down 15-0 and came back. We played good football, basically shut them out for three quarters."

The need for the extra quarter was the result of two missed extra points on both sides of the ball and a 37-yard field goal try by Rueda that fell short with just over 10 seconds to play in regulation.

Havasu scored first on a Max Delia 2-yard run. His 2-point try was also good to give Havasu an 8-0 lead.

After a Hawks' 3-and-out, Havasu marched down field 77 yards, capping the drive with an 11-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Paul Lake to Kris Larson. Rueda's extra point kick was good and Havasu had a 15-0 lead.

That's when the Gila Ridge offense woke up and started to move the ball down field, alternating runs by Kelvin Howard, Cody Nickerson and Corey Semler. Gila Ridge got on the board when Pancrazi connected with Evan Stokes for a 33-yard scoring pass.

The extra point kick by Bon was good and the Hawks narrowed the gap to 15-7.

The Knights weren't able to must an attack on their next offensive possession and punted the ball away. And just like last time, The Hawks put together a methodical march down field, including a 32-yard pass from Pancrazi to L'Jey Younger that got the ball into the red zone. Two plays later, Bon ran it in from 9-yards out.

Pancrazi connected with Semler for the 2-point conversion to tie the game going into the half.

Trailing 21-15, Gila Ridge was able to once again move the ball against the Havasu defense, primarily on runs by Pancrazi. The Hawks got the ball down to the Havasu 11-yard line with just over two minutes to go but the Knights were able to twice knock the Hawks back for a loss. On a fourth-and-17 on the Havasu 18, Pancrazi fired a bullet into the hands of Younger for the score.