Late touchdown lifts Victor Valley past Barstow in Axe Game

On Friday night, Victor Valley secured a 7-3 victory over Barstow in the first Desert Sky League game of the season. The match, known as the 103rd Axe Game, took place at Langworthy Field and marked a crucial moment for both teams vying for the league title. Head coach Thomas Riley of Victor Valley praised his team's determination, stating they were "proud of these kids for not giving up and just fighting, fighting, fighting."

Trailing by three points since the second quarter's end, Victor Valley managed to score the lone touchdown with 23 seconds remaining. Quarterback Peyton Rapattoni, who entered in the third quarter after Dylan D’Epifanio's start, completed crucial passes to Kam’ren Norment and Ja’aron Tharpe, leading the Jackrabbits to Barstow’s 13-yard line.

With seconds left on the clock, Rapattoni found Aiden Tanks in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown. Tanks, who previously scored two touchdowns in Victor Valley’s Bell Game victory over Apple Valley last month, was hailed as the "go-to guy" by Riley, although Riley noted there was room for improvement in getting Tanks the ball more often.

Despite the win, D’Epifanio faced a challenging debut as his transfer from Bishop Amat was approved by the CIF-Southern Section just one day before the game. Riley admitted that D’Epifanio had only practiced with the Jackrabbits for two weeks leading up to the match. Barstow, on the other hand, was unable to capitalize on their possession of the red zone, achieving success only twice throughout the game.

Their first opportunity came on the opening drive when quarterback JJ Applewhite fumbled, allowing Victor Valley to recover. Barstow managed to score a field goal late in the second quarter, the sole points they managed before Victor Valley's final drive. Barstow head coach Clayton Leleimene attributed the team's lack of success to execution and execution, emphasizing that they must return to their preparation and fix the issues they experienced during the game.

Victor Valley will host Granite Hills on October 8, while they will take a break next week before facing Silverado on October 15. Leleimene expressed hope that the extra time would give Barstow an opportunity to rectify their mistakes in preparation for their next match against Silverado.