If there’s one football game you want to make sure you win every season, it’s whichever match-up falls during homecoming week. And the Falcons did exactly that last Friday night, going on to trounce the Payson Longhorns, 55-14.

Next up, the Falcons hit the road to take on 5-1 Snowflake, coming off a narrow 38-35 loss to Blue Ridge.

“Snowflake is a solid, big team that likes to run the ball,” said head coach Jim Fairfield.

“We’ll be working on assignments and making sure we make the tackles. It should be a good game.”

Payson

The home stands were absolutely packed with fans donning Falcon blue last Friday as the local boys went on to improve their season record to 4-2 with a big win over the visiting team from Payson.

The Longhorns managed to draw first blood this outing, scoring on their opening drive to go up 7-0. The Falcons answered back quickly, though, with Nick Montalbano finishing a 65-yard reception in the end zone just two plays into the drive. Kicker Andreas Gromoll was out for his first game of the season, placing his inaugural PAT through the uprights to make the game 7-7.

The Falcons soon forced a turnover out of Payson before taking the lead on a five-yard run from Montalbano, going up 14-7.

Payson’s offense wasn’t quite finished yet, however, as they began a long march down the field, eating up much of the time remaining in the quarter.

Helped along by Falcon penalties and missed assignments, the Longhorns managed to equalize before the clock hit zero, making the game 14-14 to end the first quarter.

The second quarter began with the Falcons in control of the ball, coming to rest in the red zone but facing a fourth down. Fountain Hills turned to Gromoll, who put the ball through the uprights from 25 yards out, going up 17-14.

The Falcons kept the pressure on Payson when the Longhorns fumbled the following kickoff, giving Fountain Hills the ball on the 13-yard line. The Falcons were pushed back a bit and unable to get a first down, once again relying on Gromoll’s boot to land another successful field goal, making the game 20-14.

The Falcons eventually regained control of the ball and faced a long drive with five minutes remaining in the half. The local boys drove down the field hard, capping off their effort with a six-yard run from Mantalbano to earn a second TD, putting the team ahead 27-14.

Fountain Hills wasn’t quite finished yet, however, as the local team once again held Payson to minimal yardage, taking over with just 1:05 left on the clock. The final drive of the half ended with a huge reception from Jordan Atienza, stretching out to make a one-handed catch as he came crashing down in the end zone.

Another PAT from Gromoll put the Falcons up 34-14 before heading into the locker room at the half.

“Our offense was doing well,” said head coach Jim Fairfield.

“Defense would occasionally miss a tackle and let the guy go downfield. We’d miss an assignment or be in the wrong spot at the wrong time. Most of the time, though, Payson couldn’t get through.”

That would go double in the second half of play, as the Falcons’ defense would completely shut Payson down for the remainder of the game.

Rather than ease up on their opponents, the Falcons began the third quarter with Atienza returning the opening kickoff to the Longhorns’ 20. The first play of the drive was a pass to Sam Stoor, which resulted in another Falcon TD, going up 41-14.

The Falcons forced yet another turnover out of Payson, followed by a 25-yard pass to Montalbano to put the Falcons up 48-14. As Fairfield pointed out, Fountain Hills’ first two plays of the third quarter resulted in points on the board.

Fountain Hills scored once more before the third quarter came to a close with Montalbano running in to put the team up 55-14.

Play went back and forth through the fourth quarter, finally coming to a close with the Falcons recording a commanding victory in front of the homecoming crowd.

“They couldn’t stop our offense for pretty much the entire game,” Fairfield said.

“They refused to change their coverage assignments and we kept taking advantage of that. They couldn’t handle the number of receivers we threw at them. We kept relying on quick passes and were too fast for them to get to us.”

Fairfield said he was happy to see the game go so well, as a big homecoming win is good for the fans, the team and the community.

“It was great to win in front of that crowd,” Fairfield said.

“I must have talked to 25 or 30 old players after the game, too. We reminisced about the old times and talked about how good the guys look now. It was just a good night, and I want to thank everyone for coming out and being a part of it.”

Quarterback Luke McDermott went 10 for 14 in the air this outing for a total of 211 passing yards.

Nick Montalbano gave three of those passes a home, totaling 101 yards. Sam Stoor also brought down three for 41 yards with Jacob DeGroote catching two for 54.

Montalbano was the go-to guy on the ground, rushing 17 for 132 yards. Michael Doka toted seven for 46.

Kawika Reid provided three tackles on the evening with four assists while Skyler Anselmo tackled two and lent a hand on six more. Jacob Strayer assisted on six while Blake Yenglin assisted on seven. Strayer also provided a sack on the evening with Doka pulling down the Payson QB twice.

Reece Bailey and Atienza both provided an interception on the evening, returning for 25 and 23 yards respectively.

Kicker Andreas Gromoll scored 13 points for the Falcons overall, including two field goals and seven PATs.