Lake Havasu City, AZ – The Havasu varsity football team secured a dramatic victory against Deer Valley Thursday night, with a game-winning touchdown in the final seconds of play. Senior quarterback Keilor Pizarro delivered a pivotal pass to senior wide receiver Koen Taylor with only 20 seconds left, breaking a 27-27 tie and culminating in a 33-27 win for Havasu. The decisive play followed a critical defensive turnover, allowing Havasu a final opportunity for the score.
The game’s thrilling conclusion saw Havasu with possession at the Deer Valley 34-yard line. Pizarro dropped back and found Taylor along the left sideline, throwing a pass that cleared a Deer Valley defender before landing in Taylor’s hands at the 4-yard line. Taylor then absorbed a hit from another defender and tumbled into the endzone, securing the go-ahead touchdown. Head coach Tanner Kelly lauded the play, stating, “Kailor and Koen just made a crazy, crazy play.” Kelly expressed pride in his team, noting, “With all the injuries we’ve been dealing with, there’s no quitting in this team.”
Havasu's opportunity for the late score emerged moments earlier, just 26 seconds before the touchdown. Senior linebacker Landen Musselman stripped the Deer Valley quarterback of the ball, which was then recovered by fellow senior linebacker Vincent Fiantaca, providing Havasu with possession. This defensive stand was crucial, especially after Deer Valley had intercepted a Pizarro pass on Havasu’s prior drive, giving Deer Valley a chance to win in the final minutes. Coach Kelly emphasized the defense’s role, adding, “Our defense stood their ground. Landen had a big strip sack and that gave us a chance.”
Havasu opened the scoring in the first quarter, driving down the field after the opening kickoff. Junior Frankie Taylor capped the drive with a six-yard run, putting Havasu ahead 6-0. Moments later, junior lineman Travis Dennen recovered a Deer Valley fumble, returning possession to Havasu. Pizarro and Koen Taylor then connected for another score, extending Havasu’s lead to 12-0 midway through the first quarter.
However, Havasu's offense then faltered for the remainder of the first half. Deer Valley mounted a comeback, scoring a pair of touchdowns to take a 13-12 lead into halftime. Coach Kelly reflected on the shift, saying, “We went up 12-0 and I thought we kind of took our foot off the gas a little bit.” He told his team at halftime that such contests are typical for a region game, characterizing it as “a heavyweight fight going back and forth.”
Deer Valley received the kickoff to start the third quarter and quickly extended their lead to 20-12 with a significant 49-yard pass play. Havasu’s subsequent offensive possession failed, seemingly shifting momentum entirely to Deer Valley. While moving the ball deep into Havasu territory, Deer Valley saw their drive disrupted when junior linebacker Nick Sousa intercepted a screen pass that bounced off a Deer Valley player. Sousa then scrambled 50 yards into the endzone, tying the score at 20-20 and swinging the momentum back to Havasu. Later in the third quarter, Pizarro connected with junior Maddox Cosentino from nine yards out, giving Havasu a 27-20 lead heading into the final quarter. The lead was short-lived, however, as Deer Valley scored early in the fourth quarter, tying the game at 27 and setting the stage for the dramatic final nine minutes.
Coach Kelly reinforced the team’s mindset, stating, “We might get hit in the mouth a few times. But we’re going to hit back.” He underscored the importance of each game for their playoff aspirations, noting the team is “at a point in our schedule that we can’t afford any more losses if we’re going to make a playoff run.”
With the victory, Havasu improved its season record to 4-3. The team was ranked 28th in the 4A rankings prior to this weekend’s games, with the top 24 teams making the playoffs and the top eight receiving a first-round bye. Teams ranked 9-16 host those ranked 17-24 in the first round.
Havasu has three games remaining on its schedule. Next Thursday night, the Knights will travel to Buckeye to face the Youngker Roughriders. Coach Kelly plans to utilize the “film room this week” to review performance, “fix the mistakes and avoid some of the penalties,” expressing confidence that the group is “hungry” for the road game. Following the Youngker matchup, Havasu will return home on Friday night, October 23, to host the Estrella Foothills Wolves for Senior Night, with gametime set for 7 p.m. The regular season concludes on October 30 with an away game at Somerton.
