Football Recap: Gilbert Christian Takes Down Payson in a Playoff Battle

Gilbert Christian had already proven themselves in the regular season and they didn't miss a beat now that it's playoff time. They walked away with a 25-15 victory over the Payson Longhorns on Friday. The win made it back-to-back victories for the Knights.

Caleb Ely

Passing Yards (Career)

11/07/25 @ Payson	256
09/12/25 vs Seton Catholic	248
09/05/25 vs ALA - Mesa North	244
09/26/25 @ ALA - Ironwood	151
08/29/25 @ Sabino	149

Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Gilbert Christian to victory, but perhaps none more so than Caleb Ely, who threw for 256 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Those 256 passing yards gave Ely a new career-high. Pierson Scott also helped with two scores in total.

Gilbert Christian didn't let much get past them through the air: they limited Payson to a completion percentage of just 40%. The team can thank Dusty Cook for the heroic effort on defense: he. Gilbert Christian wasn't nearly as limited: they posted one of 62.9%.

Gilbert Christian didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off two passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Cook and Kamari Stanbury. Stanbury got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.

Gilbert Christian's record now sits at 8-3. As for Payson, their loss dropped their record down to 7-4.

Coming up, Gilbert Christian will face off against Valley Christian at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Payson does not have any more games scheduled as of now.