Football Recap: Damir Ilicic Leads a Balanced Attack to Beat Desert Vista + How To Watch

After having lost a blowout in their previous game against Centennial, Valley Vista was happy to have turned things around on Friday. They walked away with a 36-28 victory over the Desert Vista Thunder. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Monsoon considering their six-point performance the matchup before.

Damir Ilicic

Rushing Yards (Career)

09/12/25 @ Desert Vista	51
09/13/24 @ Desert Vista	18
11/01/24 vs O'Connor	16
08/29/25 @ O'Connor	7
09/05/25 @ Centennial	6

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Valley Vista to victory, but perhaps none more so than Damir Ilicic, who threw for 373 yards and three TDs, and also rushed for 51 yards on only six carries. Those 51 rushing yards gave Ilicic a new career-high. Valley Vista's leading receiver Joseph Watts-Diver was Ilicic's top target yet again, picking up 209 receiving yards and three scores.

Valley Vista didn't let much get past them through the air: they limited Desert Vista to a completion percentage of just 46.2%. That dominant aerial defense primarily came from three players: Adrian Reese, Nathan Hodgson, and Sawyer Oliver, who each logged one passes deflected. Valley Vista wasn't nearly as limited: they posted one of 67.4%.

Valley Vista didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. Rj Cote picked up that interception and then proceeded to rub salt in the wound by taking it back the other way for a touchdown. He got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.

Desert Vista's loss came despite a true team effort from the offense with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Kyler Drunasky, who rushed for 133 yards and one touchdown while picking up 7.8 yards per carry. Drunasky is crushing it when it comes to rushing yards: he's rushed for at least 107 every time he's taken the field this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Seth Hanson, who threw for 168 yards and three TDs.

Valley Vista's first win this season bumped their record up to 1-2. As for Desert Vista, their defeat was their sixth straight at home dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 1-2.

Coming up, Valley Vista will be defending their home field for the first time this season when they go up against Shadow Ridge at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. As for Desert Vista, they will head out on the road to challenge Mountain Ridge at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday.