Rams show resolve in close loss to Arcadia

Although the Rams fell to highly-rated Phoenix Arcadia, 28-21, on a decisive fourth-quarter touchdown, Maricopa coach Cory Nenaber was encouraged by the determination and resilience that his players exhibited.

“I’m just so proud of them,” Nenaber said. “I think they’re confident. We played like a different football team.”

After falling behind early by two touchdowns, the Rams rallied to tie the score at 14-14 in the third quarter. Maricopa then came back from a 21-14 deficit, pulling into a 21-21 deadlock on a 3-yard run by quarterback K.J. Diehl on the opening play of the fourth quarter.

“Every time they punched us, we punched back,” Nenaber said. “We countered everything they did. We were just one (defensive) stop away.”

Arcadia (5-1 overall, 2-1 in the Class 4A-II East Sky Region) scored the winning touchdown on a 5-yard run by Sosaia Maafu with 6:56 remaining.

Maricopa (2-4, 0-3) advanced into Titans territory on what turned out to be the Rams’ final offensive possession, but the Arcadia defense ended the threat with a fourth-down pass interception by Brendan Satran.

“We gave them all they wanted,” Nenaber said.

Arcadia began the game with an 80-yard, 11-play drive that culminated with a 7-yard touchdown run by Bradley Tefft.

On their next possession, the Titans drove 90 yards and increased their lead to 14-0 on a 6-yard scoring run by Maafu with 10:28 remaining in the second quarter.

Later in the second period, Arcadia was advancing toward a potential third touchdown when the Maricopa defense forced a key turnover. On a second-down play from the Rams 26-yard line, the Titans fumbled an attempted handoff, and senior Josh Addington recovered the loose ball for Maricopa.

The Rams seized the opportunity by driving 66 yards in eight plays and crossing the goal line on a 1-yard run by Diehl with 29 seconds remaining before halftime. Key plays in the sequence included a 13-yard pass from Diehl to Brian Nechamkin, a 20-yard run by Travis Brown and a 31-yard run by Randel Barber.

The Rams tied the score at 14-14 with an 80-yard march to begin the second half. After Nechamkin ignited the drive with a 26-yard run and Barber kept it going with an 11-yard reception on fourth-down-and-6 from the Arcadia 35, Diehl threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Spencer Wilson.

Arcadia took a 21-14 lead on an 11-yard touchdown run by Maafu with 3:20 left in the third, but Maricopa fought back again.

Taking possession at their own 11-yard line, the Rams advanced 89 yards in eight plays. A 40-yard run by Brown gave Maricopa a first down at the Arcadia 3. Diehl scored two plays later on a 3-yard run to pull the Rams into a 21-21 tie with 11:54 remaining in the fourth quarter.

After the Titans drove 77 yards and went ahead 28-21 on Maafu’s 5-yard run with 6:56 left, the Maricopa offense quickly moved into Arcadia territory on a 41-yard pass from Diehl to Brown. On fourth-and-9 from the 35, Satran made his key pass interception for the Titans.

The Arcadia offense then ran out the final 4:03.

Diehl completed 8 of 12 passes for 113 yards with one touchdown and one interception for Maricopa. He also rushed for 20 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries.

Brown led the Rams with 62 yards rushing on three carries and 58 yards receiving on two catches.

The Maricopa offense gained 278 total yards, while Arcadia finished with 434 yards.

Maafu rushed for 113 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries for the Titans, who also got 76 yards rushing from Tefft, 68 yards from Marty Chavez and 58 yards from Ryan Fochtman.

The Titans finished with 334 yards rushing, and Arcadia quarterback Cole Richardson added 100 yards passing.

“They’re a really good offense,” Nenaber said about the Titans. “They’ve got big linemen who get downfield and block. You’ve got to give them a lot of credit.”