Ralston Valley football takes down rival A-West in 5A playoffs

ARVADA — Ralston Valley went a little off script Saturday afternoon at the North Area Athletic Complex.

Junior quarterback Zeke Andrews ran for a trio of touchdowns as the No. 3-seeded Mustangs defeated rival Arvada West 24-12 in the second round of the Class 5A football state tournament. Andrews had just four rushing touchdowns during the regular season.

“That wasn’t on the script,” Andrews said with a laugh. “I was going to do whatever I needed to do to win. We can’t lose to those guys, ever.”

Ralston Valley (10-1 record) will face No. 6 Legend in the 5A quarterfinals next week, likely Saturday back at the NAAC. The Titans (10-1) grabbed a tight 24-20 victory over Arapahoe on Friday night.

“To be honest, I was 100 percent focused on Arvada West,” Ralston Valley coach Jared Yannacito said about the upcoming match-up against Legend. “We don’t have the luxury to look forward. We’ll be studying them all week.”

Yannacito had good reason to give the No. 14 Wildcats (7-5) his full attention. The cross-town rivalry was a rematch of both the Mustangs and Wildcats from their regular-season finale on Halloween night two weeks ago.

A-West actually held a 7-3 lead heading into the fourth quarter, but Ralston Valley rallied for a pair of fourth-quarter touchdowns to pull out a 17-7 victory to complete an undefeated 5-0 record in the 5A Metro League

“I’ve played with and against (Arvada West) kids my whole life. It’s a big rivalry for me,” said Ralston Valley junior Nico Benallo, who had a big 31-yard catch on the Mustangs’ final touchdown drive to seal the win. “It motivates everyone. Everyone battled every play.”

While Ralston Valley had a bye last week with a top-8 seed, A-West played Sunday afternoon in the opening round against Fort Collins. The Wildcats’ offense put up over 600 yards of total offense and scored eight touchdowns in a 59-29 victory over the Lambkins.

A-West was clearly one of the more dangerous lower seeds heading into the second round. All four of the Wildcats’ losses — Fairview, Columbine, Chatfield and Ralston Valley — were to top-10 seeds that were all playing in the round of 16 of the 5A state tournament this week.

The Wildcats took a 6-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter against Ralston Valley. Junior quarterback Logan Duhachek hit junior Noah Meurer for a 14-yard touchdown.

However, Ralston Valley got on the scoreboard in the final minute before halftime with a 13-yard touchdown run by Andrews.

“He (Andrews) is a special player and our o-line played great,” Yannacito said of his junior quarterback. “He finds a way to make plays. He also is level-headed throughout the game. He is a great kid.”

The Mustangs extended their lead to 14-6 scoring on the opening drive of the second half. This time, Andrews had a 3-yard touchdown run. A 33-yard field goal by junior Cole Pfeifer pushed the lead to 17-6 at the start of the fourth quarter.

A-West wouldn’t fold. Duhachek connected with junior Keegan Balistreri for a 28-yard touchdown with 9:14 left in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 17-12.

“That is the message that we give our team. We are the ultimate team,” Yannacito said. “The offense is going to make a drive when they have to. The defense is going to get a stop and the special teams is going to make a play.”

The Ralston Valley offense pulled off the drive of the game eating up the majority of the clock in the fourth quarter. Andrews finished the drive with a 1-yard plunge into the end zone for a 24-12 lead.

“We knew we needed to score,” Andrews said about A-West cutting the lead to 17-12 with just over 9 minutes remaining. “We knew we needed a long 6-minute drive to bleed the clock. Nico made a huge play. From there our offensive line took over.”

Legend will be another tough test for Ralston Valley. The Titans lone loss this season with a close 16-14 non-league defeat to Columbine. Legend is on an 8-game winning streak.

“I’m super excited. Home playoff games are special,” Andrews said of facing Legend next week. “We are just excited to be out here again.”