In the end, it was a game of missed opportunities for Moapa Valley.
The Pirates failed to capitalize on multiple red-zone chances Saturday, and Churchill County capitalized with a fourth-quarter touchdown to defeat the Pirates 21-14 in the Class 3A state championship game at UNR’s Mackay Stadium.
Moapa Valley’s offense looked strong early, getting into the red zone on its first two possessions. But the long drives yielded only a field goal, and the Pirates (8-5) fell behind 7-3 after the Greenwave (12-1) scored on a 10-yard run by Camden Richardson late in the first quarter.
“It just came down to a couple of mental mistakes,” Moapa Valley coach Brent Lewis said. “We had some penalties that got us behind the sticks. We had our chances.”
The Pirates trailed 21-14 with 1:52 remaining in the game when a final opportunity was lost. The Greenwave’s Maxton Richardson intercepted a Kamren Drosos fourth-and-goal pass in his own end zone to put the game out of reach.
“That was a run-pass option,” Lewis said. “(Drosos) pulled it in and didn’t quite get enough on the throw.”
The Pirates otherwise held their own, finishing with 357 yards while giving up 410. After Carson Melendy extended Churchill County’s lead to 14-6 with a 1-yard TD run, Moapa answered with a 7-yard TD pass from Drosos to Briggs Hickman and tied the score at 14 with a 2-point conversion just before halftime.
Melendy, who finished with 105 yards on 18 carries, scored the game-winner on a 6-yard TD run to make it 21-14 in the first minute of the fourth quarter.
Lewis said his players’ effort capped a quality season despite the loss.
“We really scheduled tough at the beginning of this year and we took a few lumps early,” he said. “But at the end we were playing our best football, and you can’t ask for anything more than that. It literally came down to one or two plays.”
Drosos completed 13 of 23 passes for 173 yards to lead the Pirates, and Hickman carried 28 times for 129 yards.
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