Keion Russell is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism graduate student assigned to cover Estrella Foothills High School for AZPreps365.com

ESTRELLA – Despite a sluggish start offensively,  Seton Catholic went on to score 30 unanswered points to defeat Estrella Foothills, 37-21, Friday night. 

“We were sleepwalking there in the first half,” Seton Catholic coach Pete Walheim said. “So we made a few adjustments at the half and made it known we wanted to push them around in the run game. Our guys held up and did just that in the second half.”

The Sentinels leaned on senior running back Luc Aguilar, who exploded for 136 yards and four touchdowns, including a game-sealing 47-yard run down the right sideline with 5:05 remaining in the fourth quarter. 

“Give credit to my offensive line up front,” Aguilar said. “They’re the ones who block for me. They’re the ones who open up those lanes so I can make big plays. Game ball has to go to them tonight.”

The Wolves jumped out to a 14-7 lead with 7:09 in the second quarter when senior quarterback Hone Wray kept it himself up the middle for a 4-yard touchdown. 

Wray completed  12 of 21 passes for 114 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.

The Sentinels responded quickly with a Chase Dickson 14-yard touchdown pass to Aguilar, taking a 15-14 halftime lead.  

The Seton Catholic defense showed its dominance in the second half, forcing the Wolves into three turnovers while surrendering only seven points for the remainder of the game.

Junior middle linebacker Sloan Sweet came up with two interceptions, providing Seton Catholic with the spark they needed to take control of the game. 

“That defensive side is a special group of players,” Walheim said. “We know how much turnovers kill momentum, and once we were able to do that a couple times we were fine.”

The Wolves’ leading rusher, AJ Horne, who averaged 108 yards per game coming into Friday’s game,  was held in check by the swarming Sentinels defense. Horne rushed the ball 15 times for 56 yards. 

“We’ve got to do a better job running the ball,” Estrella Foothills coach Mike Spencer said. “ The lanes just weren't there tonight and credit Seton Catholic for that.” 

Estrella Foothills will look  to turn the page quickly as they prepare for their Region 4A opener next week. 

“We just have to get back to the fundamentals,” Spencer said. “We just have to keep working on our craft if we want to compete with a tough Maryvale group next week on the road.”

Seton Catholic (4-1) will host Snowflake (4-0) next Friday at 7 p.m.

Estrella Foothills (3-2) will travel to Maryvale (1-4) next Friday at 7 p.m.