Prep football playoffs: Nampa, Vallivue, Capital all pull off first-round upsets
One of the hottest teams in Idaho 4A high school football scored its biggest win of the season Friday night in the first round of the playoffs.
And did it in impressive fashion.
High-flying Nampa, which won four straight games while averaging more than 50 points to fight its way into the postseason, avenged a regular-season loss with a 37-29 victory at Emmett, knocking last season’s state runner-up out of the postseason.
The Bulldogs (6-4), who lost 40-30 to the Huskies (7-3) in September but have not lost since, scored two first-quarter touchdowns and never trailed in a game that featured nine touchdowns and nearly 750 yards of offense.
Nampa, which will face Blackfoot next week in the second round of the playoffs, rushed for 360 yards on 49 carries to sustain long drives and keep the ball away from Emmett’s high-powered offense. Daniel Carrillo led the attack with 177 yards on 29 carries, including two touchdowns, and Ryan Schuler gained 123 yards on just 10 carries.
The Huskies, who closed the regular season with a surprising 8-7 loss to Vallivue, got within six points of the Bulldogs three times. But Nampa responded each time with a TD. Schuler’s 54-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter gave Nampa a 34-21 lead, and a 37-yard field goal by Lance Hanna with 5:31 left in the game made it 37-21.
Emmett QB Caden Young, the reigning 4A All-Idaho Player of the Year, completed 8-of-15 passes for 133 yards and two TDs, and also ran for 52 yards and a score. But he was intercepted once — by Schuler.
Meridian 47, Madison 28
Meridian earned its first playoff victory since its state championship season in 2007 with a defeat of Madison. The Warriors were 0-7 in playoff appearances since winning it all, including losses to the Bobcats (6-4) in 2016, ‘17 and ‘18.
Meridian (7-3) draws top-ranked and unbeaten Mountain View (9-0) in the quarterfinals. The Mavericks came from behind to beat the Warriors, 14-13, in both teams’ season opener on Aug. 27.
Meridian ran for 236 yards Friday. Marco Del Rio (109 yards), Kross Antonnacchi (87 yards) and Malakai Martinez (19 yards) each ran for two TDs. Martinez also went 12-of-16 for 142 yards and a TD through the air.
Madison pulled withing 33-28 in the third quarter. But Del Rio put the game away with touchdown runs of 1 and 38 yards.
Capital 44, Lewiston 13
The Eagles (7-3) jumped out to a 21-0 lead after Kaden Maestretti returned a blocked punt 47 yards for a touchdown early in the second quarter, and Capital cruised to a first-round win at Lewiston (7-3).
Capital will travel to Rigby (8-1) in the quarterfinals next week.
Capital’s Kody Walk dominated both sides of the ball, racking up five sacks on defense and turning 10 carries into 84 yards and two TDs on offense.
Meanwhile, Max Clark finished 12-of-24 for 203 yards and two TDs. Ethan Castillo had six catches for 109 yards and a TD, and Jacob Olson also hauled in a 39-yard TD pass.
Lewiston entered as 5A’s leading offense (41 ppg). But Capital’s defensive line lived in the backfield, finishing with 10 sacks.
Highland 45, Skyview 28
Senior receiver TerRyck Pennington hauled in nine receptions for 222 yards and three touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough to keep Skyview alive in the 5A state playoffs.
Highland (8-2) advances to next week’s quarterfinals, where the Rams travel to Rocky Mountain (7-2), which earned a first-round bye.
The Hawks (5-5) tied the game at 21-all about midway through the third quarter, but the Rams outscored Skyview 24-7 the rest of the way for the victory.
Highland quarterback Jack Whitmer was 12-for-18 passing for 177 yards and two touchdowns, and he also ran for 73 yards and three more scores.
Skyview QB Max Cutforth tossed all three TDs to Pennington and finished 23-for-36 for 352 yards without an interception. Atonio Fifita added 68 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries.
Vallivue 28, Minico 12
Vallivue upset the No. 2 team in the 4A classification last week, and the Falcons continued their upset streak in the first round of the state playoffs.
Playing on the road, the Falcons held unanimous No. 1 Minico to 179 total yards and forced a fumble to set up a quarterfinal against Skyline next week.
Quarterback Santi Diaz ran for a pair of touchdowns and threw a 27-yard TD pass to Camryn Deane on fourth-and-27 in the third quarter to lead Vallivue. Diaz collected 158 yards passing and 40 yards on the ground, while Carson Fox opened the scoring for the Falcons on a 13-yard run with 1:18 remaining in the first quarter.
Minico (9-1) finished with 87 yards through the air and 92 on the ground.
Bishop Kelly 49, Twin Falls 21
Seth Knothe totaled 196 of Bishop Kelly’s 289 rushing yards as the Knights blasted Twin Falls in the first round of the 4A state playoffs.
Knothe ran for four touchdowns, and quarterback Hadley Smith completed 13-of-20 passes for 227 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Jason Buss caught two of those TD passes and amassed four catches for 118 yards.
Bishop Kelly (8-2) will travel to No. 2 seed Pocatello (8-2) — a 24-6 winner over Bonneville — for a quarterfinal matchup next week.
Weiser 62, Buhl 20
Weiser (9-1) made quick work of Buhl in the first round of the 3A state playoffs. No details were reported.
The Wolverines will host a yet-to-be-determined team in next week’s quarterfinals.
Melba 18, West Jefferson 12
Melba used a balanced attack and took advantage of three West Jefferson interceptions to advance to the 2A state quarterfinals.
Quarterback Cache Beus went 7-for-13 through the air for 225 yards and a touchdown. Beus’ favorite target was Dillon Stosich, who caught four pass for 145 yards and a 21-yard TD.
Trace Stimpson and Gabe Shaffer teamed up to lead the Mustangs (7-3) on the ground with a combined 126 yards and two TDs.
MORE SCORES
No statistical information was provided from the following games:
- Blackfoot 52, Middleton 24
- Dietrich 60, Council 38
This story was originally published October 30, 2021 at 12:04 AM.
