A strong running game keyed Mountain Pointe High School's 58-34 home victory against Pinnacle High School on Friday night.

It’s no secret that the Mountain Pointe Pride, now 4-1 on the season, run the ball well, but senior Gary Bragg and junior Jakim Mckinney made an especially strong statement in their first home game of the season.

“We’re like a perfect duo,” Mckinney said. “I think that we do amazing together.”

It isn’t hard to see why he thinks this way.

On the 18-play drive that Mountain Pointe opened the second half with, either Mckinney or Bragg were handed the ball 15 times.

The nearly eight minute drive ended with a 3-yard Gary Bragg touchdown run..

That drive made it clear that Pinnacle, which fell to 3-3, didn't have a lot of answers for the Pride's run game.

While the yardage and points put up by Mckinney and Bragg glittered in the box score, they both credited their offensive line after the game.

“I love them all, they did their thing tonight,” Bragg said. “Without them there is no me.” 

The Pride's offensive line were physical the entire game, owning the line of scrimmage. They were fast off the ball, strong, and as a unit seemed impenetrable for almost the entire game, especially in the second half.

Mountain Pointe Coach Norris Vaughan summed up the win succinctly after the game.

“The offensive line played awesome. Our running backs were awesome. That was the story of the game,” Vaughan said.

Mountain Pointe looks toward rival Desert Vista (4-1) next Thursday on the road.