Salpointe FB grinds out 28-21 victory over Marcos de Niza

September 26, 2014 by Les Willsey, AZPreps365


Nothing is easy when you're the defending state champs. Salpointe's football team has discovered that the past four weeks in a number of ways.

Four straight road games. Two scratch-and-claw victories the past two weeks in the East Valley. And for good measure Salpointe coach Dennis Bene had to start a freshman quarterback Friday night in the hostile environment of Marcos de Niza.

That freshman -- Jamarye Joiner -- stepped up and efficiently ran Salpointe's ball-control, ground helping rally the Lancers to a 28-21 win in a Division II game matching perennial title contenders.

Salpointe improved to 5-0 and extended its winning streak to 19 games dating back to last year's perfect 14-0 campaign. Joiner broke a 21-21 tie with the winning score -- a 5-yard touchdown run with 8:12 left in the game. It was Salpointe's only lead of the game.

Joiner's tally -- off a bootleg to the right -- came just two minutes after Salpointe's Dominic Pedrotty recovered the third muffed punt of the half by Marcos de Niza (3-2). Salpointe had great field position at Marcos' 35. Three runs by Taylor Powell and three by Joiner accounted for the 35 yards. Powell, who alternated at running back with Dominic Salaz, scored Salpointe's other three touchdowns on 3-yard runs. Salaz had the best night of the trio, netting 140 yards on 22 rushes. Joiner finished with 97 yards on 26 carries and Powell 53 yards on 15 carries.

Joiner, who competed with two teammates for the starting quarterback spot over the summer, didn't get the starting nod losing out to senior Sammy Muniz. Muniz accounted for 956 yards of offense in four starts -- 624 passing and 344 rushing.

Bene decided to use Joiner at receiver to begin the season and wait for the right time to use Joiner behind center. The right time was forced at midweek this week.

"I had to suspend our starting quarterback ( Muniz) Wednesday for violatiing team rules," Bene said. "I told Jamarye he was starting that day. He just winked.... I didn't think he was far enough along to start when the season began, but if I had to use him I was ready to. He responded."

Bene praised his defense, which managed to blank Marcos de Niza and its speedy set of skill-position players in the second half. Salpointe gave up two long plays for TDs in the first half and a barrage of penalties early in the first period helped Marcos take a 7-0 lead. Three motion infractions on Salpointe and a personal foul following a put return set Marcos up at the Salpointe 20.

Marcos de Niza sophomore quarterback Nazareth Greer tossed three TD passes - a 7-yarder to Avery Sanders for a 7-0 lead and 35- and 51-yard strikes to Marcus Maldonado and Luke Nguyen, respectivley,  that put the Padres in front by seven each time. Greer completed 16-of 32 passes for 256 yards. He wasn't helped by three of four drops and a little more pressure from Salpointe's defense in the second half.

Marcos de Niza led 21-14 at halftime, but was tied less than four minutes into the third period by another ball control drive. This one was a nine-play, 72-yard march highlighted by three, double-digit carries by Salaz. It's first two scoring drives covered 72 yards in nine plays and 80 yards in 18 plays.