Will Case is a Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover ALA-Gilbert North.

The Horizon Huskies were too much for the American Leadership Academy - Gilbert North Eagles as they earned a dominant 51-27 win Friday night in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The Huskies’ defense was a problem in the first half. The Eagles’ offense couldn’t get anything going, trailing by 28 points at the half.

“I was completely disgusted with the first half,” Eagles head coach Randy Ricedorff said. “Our offensive line really struggled at times tonight. We have to get better there with the sacks and turnovers, that stuff can’t happen.”

Eagles starting quarterback Bryson Landen and wide receiver Brandon Phelps marched the offense down with running back Kody Thorley finding the end zone to take a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter. It was all Huskies for the rest of the half.

Huskies junior quarterback Jase Ashley got it done through the air and on the ground. He rushed for 82 yards on just five attempts, including two touchdowns, and threw for two touchdowns as well.

“We played lights out,” Ashley said. “We knew what we had to do playing a tough opponent. We knew this would be big for our seeding and we came out and got it done.”

Huskies two-way player Carson Kolb made his presence known on offense and defense. He caught a touchdown late in the first quarter and was credited with a scoop-and-score midway through the second quarter that put the Huskies up 35-7 heading into halftime.

After multiple drives where the Eagles offense couldn’t get anything going, junior quarterback Conner White led the Eagles for the rest of the game. He and the offense found a bit of a groove in the second half, putting up 20 points in their attempt to make a comeback.

“I was proud of them for fighting in the second half,” Ricedorff said. “We got to figure things out because we are better than what we played.”

No comeback was made due to the hounding Husky defense. White was never comfortable in the pocket and was sacked on key downs throughout the game.

“Those guys balled out,” Ashley said of Horizon's defense. “Big shout out to them for making plays all night and getting stops.”

White completed 14 passes for 207 yards, two touchdowns, one interception and lost a fumble.

“The turnovers helped us out and we were able to capitalize,” said Huskies head coach Andy Litten. “I just want us to continue to physically impose ourselves. Our physicality, our toughness and our brand of football is something in 5A that most teams don't see and they are not used to. We run a lot of heavy, tough personnel on offense and on defense we have a tough front that’s gonna make you pay for things.”

For ALA-Gilbert North, Phelps continued to add to his career receptions, touchdowns and receiving yards records, racking up nine catches for 132 yards and one touchdown.

Thorley and Boston Morris also recorded touchdowns in the second half for the Eagles.

Both teams now look forward to the playoffs, which start Thursday. The Huskies will match up against Canyon View, while the Eagles will play Marana.

Litten expects big things for his team in the future and was pleased with his team's play.

“I thought we came out and played real sharp,” Litten said. “We knew that this was a huge game in terms of seeding and getting us ready for the playoffs. To their credit, they came out and made us really work for it.”

For the Eagles, Ricedorff still believes in his team and is excited to move forward as a unit.

“I have to go back and look at the film,” he said. “We missed the fundamentals of the game. A lot of missed tackles, guys in the right place and just not making plays. We have to get that stuff cleaned up and we know we are a good team offensively and can be good sporadically defensively and we just gotta keep building on it. We just gotta get better as a complete group.”