The Pahrump Valley High School Trojans delivered a powerhouse performance Friday night, defeating the Chaparral Cowboys 56-14 at home in front of a packed and spirited crowd. The night began with a moment of pride as the Pahrump Valley Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol presented the colors, followed by Avah Resendiz singing a moving rendition of the National Anthem. The stands were alive throughout the game with support from the Pahrump Valley Cheer team, while the Pahrump Valley Dance team kept the energy high with performances during timeouts, quarter breaks, and halftime.
The Cowboys opened with possession, but the Trojans defense immediately set the tone. Angel Ware stopped the first run for no gain, and after a five-yard loss and a false start penalty, Chaparral faced third and long. Quarterback pressure and tight coverage forced them to punt, but their drive was extended briefly by a holding penalty. Even so, tackles by Bosket and Alvarez and a big stop by Jack Walker on fourth down gave the Trojans the ball back.
Quarterback Kayne Horibe wasted little time making an impact. After scrambling for a first down, he delivered a strike down the middle to Austin Alvarez, who hauled in the catch for the first touchdown of the game. Slusher drilled the extra point to make it 7-0 with 5:24 left in the first quarter.
Chaparral answered with a long touchdown pass late in the quarter, followed by a successful two-point conversion to close the gap to 13-8. But Pahrump responded immediately. Alvarez’s sure hands and Horibe’s legs kept the chains moving, and Alvarez capped the drive with a powerful run into the end zone to extend the lead to 21-8 after another Slusher kick.
Momentum swung heavily when the Trojans executed a short kickoff that Alvarez himself caught, giving Pahrump the ball right back. Horibe pounded the ball forward on a quarterback sneak near the goal line for another touchdown, then connected with Paul Walker for a bobbled but completed two-point conversion to push the score to 29-8.
The Cowboys tried to regroup, but the Trojan defense held firm. Julio Angelo Ackerman stuffed a quarterback sneak, Iyan Bosket added a sack, and Angel Ware nearly pulled down an interception. With just over three minutes left in the half, Horibe and Alvarez connected again for a big gain before Horibe carried it himself for another score. Though the extra point was blocked, Pahrump carried a 35-8 lead into halftime after a late interception by Chaparral ended one last Trojan drive.
The Trojans opened the second half with more fireworks. On their first possession, Angel Ware carried before fumbling near the red zone, but Ryan Hamlin alertly pounced on the ball to keep the drive alive. A short run by Slusher resulted in another fumble at the goal line, but this time it was Gideon Wydick who recovered the loose ball and pushed it across for a touchdown. That score made it 42-8 early in the third quarter.
Chaparral managed a response with a long sideline touchdown pass, though they failed on the two-point attempt, bringing the score to 42-14. Once again, Pahrump fired right back. Alvarez returned the kickoff to the 41-yard line, and after a strong run by Slusher, Horibe hit Hamlin with a perfect pass up the middle for a touchdown. The extra point was good, extending the lead to 49-14.
The Trojan defense then forced another turnover as Angel Ware intercepted a pass, though a block-in-the-back penalty nullified the return. Later, Hamlin grabbed his own interception to stop another Chaparral drive, keeping the Cowboys off the board for the rest of the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, the Trojans put the finishing touches on their dominant performance. Alvarez carried the ball for multiple first downs, Horibe scrambled deep into Cowboy territory, and Slusher capped the drive with a tough run up the middle for the final touchdown of the night. After multiple offside penalties on the point-after attempt, Slusher stayed composed and knocked it through, sealing the 56-14 win.
Head Coach Thomas Walker was thrilled with the complete effort. “We had 488 yards of total offense. Kayne was 11 of 19 for 220yd and 3 passing TD’s. Ryan Hamlin had 2 receiving and Austin Alvarez had 1. We had 268 yards rushing, Kayne had 3 rushing TD’s, Gideon Wydick had a rushing/recovered fumble for 1 and Josh Slusher had 1. Kayne extended his streak of 3 or more passing TD’s to eight straight games. Defensively we looked good as well. We have some injuries in the secondary so we were not as stingy as we would have liked but the team defense did a great job. Josh Slusher was subbing as kicker due to injury, but he had some thunder in his leg for sure. The O-Line was outstanding again. They are really starting to play well as a unit. We look forward to seeing what they do this week against a tough 4A opponent in Spring Valley High School. They will be bigger, stronger, faster than everyone we played so far this year. We do need to continue to work on tightening up the passing game as well as the secondary defensively. This week will be a good measuring stick to who we are as a team.”
Offensive Coordinator Toby Henry emphasized the consistency. “It was the second week in a row that we performed well on offense. Our guys know that this is now the standard. We did what we are suppose to do. We have a tougher opponent this week and we need to continue to get better in practice. We will throw a couple new things at them this week. Our guys are really good at executing new wrinkles in our offense. I can’t wait to see them play against a tougher opponent this week. It’s going to be fun.”
Defensive Coordinator Mike Colucci credited the adaptability of his players. “Overall, our defense played a solid game. There were a few adjustments we needed to make during the first half, and the boys adapted really well and settled in nicely. Special teams stole some possessions for us, which took some pressure off the defense.
We are excited for the challenge that Spring Valley will bring this Friday. They have size, speed, and are well coached. They were one of the top teams in the 4A last year, and look to be picking up right where they left off. It will be a great test for our defense!”
The Trojans will carry their 56-14 victory into another home game this Friday when they host Spring Valley. Fans can expect another exciting night of football under the lights, with the Trojans ready to rise to the challenge.
