5A Northeast Valley Top Player Performances of the Week
Congratulations to this week's top players! We're covering the best performances in games played on Thursday and Friday (using all statistics entered as of the time of writing). Enjoy!
Gunnar Perry Turns in Season-Best Effort
Notre Dame Prep came up short on Friday despite Gunnar Perry delivering his best game to date. Perry rushed for 84 yards and two touchdowns on only six carries, good enough to set a new career-high in rushing yards in the process. The bulk of those rushing yards came from one huge play: a run that gained an incredible 65 yards.
Perry and Notre Dame Prep will take on ALA - Gilbert North at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. The matchup will pit Perry up against the Eagles' star rusher Kody Thorley. Will the game be decided in the trenches? We'll have our answer very soon.
Gamescore: 44.90
Jase Ashley's Big Game Leads Horizon over Higley
Horizon picked up their fourth consecutive win on Thursday thanks in part to Jase Ashley. Ashley did his part (and then some), throwing for 180 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 61 yards and a touchdown for the 'W'. He also made an appearance on special teams (luckily for Horizon): his a 51-yard strike wound up winning them the game.
Horizon pushed their record up to 7-1 with the win, which was their tenth straight at home dating back to last season. Ashley and Horizon will face off against Cactus Shadows at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Gamescore: 33.50
Donivan C Dixon Dazzles in Cactus Shadows Win
Donivan C Dixon was a major factor in Cactus Shadows's win over Notre Dame Prep on Friday. C Dixon was dynamite, rushing for 105 yards and a touchdown, while also throwing for 170 yards and a touchdown. He was no stranger to the big play, taking off on a dash that went for 51 yards.
Notre Dame Prep's probably not too fond of C Dixon given he always seems to get the better of them. C Dixon threw for 215 yards and three touchdowns while completing 72% of his passes, and also rushed for 83 yards the last time he and the Saints duked it out back in October of 2023.
Gamescore: 29.43
Gunner Fagrell Delivers Best Effort of Season
Sadly, Gunner Fagrell posting his best game of the season wasn't enough to lead Higley over Horizon on Thursday. Fagrell threw for 319 yards and two touchdowns while picking up 10.6 yards per attempt.
If history really does repeat itself, Fagrell might just drop another big game when he faces off against Desert Mountain on Friday. When Fagrell last faced the Wolves back in October of 2023, he threw for 246 yards and five touchdowns, and also rushed for 156 yards while picking up 8.7 yards per carry.
Gamescore: 26.87
Kody Thorley Rounds Out Top Five
Rounding off our Top Five is Kody Thorley of ALA - Gilbert North. Thorley rushed for five yards.
ALA - Gilbert North's loss ended a seven-game streak of wins at home dating back to last season and dropped them to 6-2. Thorley and ALA - Gilbert North will head out to challenge Notre Dame Prep at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Gamescore: 24.28
Other Notable Players
- Tyler Stanford: 1.5 sacks and 9 total tackles (3.5 for loss) (Gamescore: 23.50)
- Gatling Drake Walton: 146 yards receiving, 1 TD (Gamescore: 21.35)
- Cooper Perry: 33 yards receiving; 52 yards rushing, 1 TD (Gamescore: 19.73)
- Nathan Jones: 2 sacks and 6 total tackles (2.0 for loss) (Gamescore: 18.75)
- Andrew Muirhead: 105 yards rushing; 61 yards receiving (Gamescore: 18.32)
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps