(GILBERT, Ariz.) The Gilbert Christian varsity football team extended its winning streak to three games following a big 29-12 victory over the Crismon Rattlers on Friday. The Knights came from behind to amass 21 in the second half of play, courtesy of two Kamari Stanbury scores and lights-out defense, which saw senior lineman Josh Rich pick-up a touchdown of his own.
With the win, GCHS improves to 3-2 on the year. The Knights remain undefeated at home. The Rattlers drop to 0-5 with the loss.
"Our defense played really well tonight," Head Coach John Carlson said. "These kids are really buying-in and learning every day. They work so hard. For us, buy-in is so important. What that means is we are going to focus on doing three things really well. The first is our effort. We want to give everything we have at everything we do. Number two is our attitude. We are looking for resilience and we are looking for joy. Sometimes it can be difficult to be joyful on the football field, but we want to stick together, and play through and really embrace that challenge. This is also an important life-lesson for our players; that no matter what circumstances we face, we can choose joy and gratitude. And the third thing we are teaching is to be great teammates. That looks like being humble, being hungry and being respectful."
Crismon got off to a hot start, breaking away on a short pass to score the first touchdown of the evening, but missed the extra point to keep it at 6-0.
GCHS trekked up the field on the next drive, featuring shrewd play from junior quarterback Tyler Burr, who managed to hit his favorite targets Kaleb Powell and Kamari Stanbury before bringing it to even on a three-yard run of his own with 5:51 to play in the first.
A big sack and fumble recovery from junior Colton Rogers gave the Knights the ball right back, and the ensuing drive had some Sportscenter-worthy highlights, like a colossal stiff-arm from Burr, but a missed field goal at 4:10 kept the game even (6-6) to end first quarter play.
In the second, Rich broke the tie for GCHS with a sack to pick up the safety and two, bringing it to 8-6, but Crismon responded with 12.8 on the clock, heaving an 18-yarder into the endzone to make it 12-8. The Rattlers tried for two, but were denied by the Knights' defensive effort.
Gilbert Christian emerged from the locker room looking hungry, and it wasn't long before Stanbury beat the Rattlers' corner down the field to snag a deep 53-yarder from Burr in the endzone. An extra point from senior Kaleb Powell hit, giving GCHS the 15-12 edge halfway through the third.
Sophomore linebacker Hyatt Lang was next to strike, obliterating the Crismon quarterback with a sack to cause a fumble, which was recovered and taken 43-yards across the goal line by Rich. Powell's second extra point of the half extended the lead to 22-12.
The Knights stamped the victory in the fourth, with Burr again connecting with Stanbury on an 11-yard pass for touchdown to make it 28-12, and Powell notarized it with another EP to record the final at 29-12.
"This game showed us how we can bounce back from adversity as a team," Burr said. "The first half was slow offensively, but the defense stepped up and shut them down for us. Coach Carlson really pumped us up at halftime and turned the tide with his coaching tips. The second half felt much better on the offensive side of the ball. I have to give a big shout-out to Colby for stepping in at running back tonight and being a dog out there. Kamari made some great second half plays for us and that helped us to bounce back. Again, we have to give so much credit to the amazing defense. They shut them down the entire game and have been so strong this season. I'm proud of the boys and how we bounced back from adversity tonight."
Burr finished the evening with 153 passing yards, two touchdown deliveries and a score of his own. Senior receiver Colby Johnston, who stepped in to play running back for an injured Sam Webb, looked fast and natural as he accumulated 85 rushing yards for GCHS. Stanbury led the receivers with 109 yards and a pair of TDs in the win.
Commanding the defense was Lang, who logged eight tackles, seven for loss, five assisted takedowns, and a colossal four sacks. The versatile Powell scored three points, and managed six tackles, four tackle assists, and 22 receiving yards. Rich finished his impressive outing with a fumble recovery, a touchdown, a safety, a sack, a tackle (for loss) and five assisted tackles.
Gilbert Christian travels to Fountain Hills High on Thursday for a 7:00pm contest, looking to extend the three-game streak and pick up its first road win in 2023.
-GO KNIGHTS-
