ALMA BREAKS AWAY FROM FARMINGTON

FARMINGTON -- After a strong second half, the Alma Airedales defeated the Farmington Cardinals 35-14 on Friday night in 5A-West action. Alma scored on its second drive of the night, after linebacker Garrison Jensen intercepted a Farmington pass. After a quick pass play, running back Kaleb Pike scored on a 3-yard run. Pike would score again before halftime on a 14-yard run. The junior finished the night with 10 rushes for 60 yards and two touchdowns. Farmington would respond after each score and in the same fashion. Quarterback Trey Waggle found wide receiver Skyler Montez twice in the end zone to tie the game up before the half. Waggle finished the game with 134 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He completed 68 percent of his passes. "That's a typical Mike Adams team," Alma coach Doug Loughridge said. "They were physical up front. Their offensive line wore us down." Alma (3-2, 2-0 5A-West) dominated the second-half time of possession, with the Airedales choosing to run the ball for the majority of the half. Alma would finish the game with 249 rushing yards, while Farmington finished with 164. "We knew we had to keep their offense on the sideline for as long as we could," Farmington head coach Mike Adams said. "They're so dynamic, so we wanted to make sure to try to run the football and do what we do well." Airedales quarterback Noah Dotson only threw four passes in the half compared to 13 in the first, but scorched the Cardinals on the ground, running for 136 yards on 15 carries in the second half. The senior also scored with less than a minute left in the game. "He brings a balance," Loughridge said. "He's a 230-pound fullback when he's running and a finesse, pro-style quarterback when he's throwing. He brings a lot to the table when he has the ball in his hands." Jensen contributed on the offensive side of the ball by scoring two second-half touchdowns on only two carries. The Cardinals (2-3, 1-1) had a few promising drives fall short, including failing to score after getting a first-and-goal early in the fourth quarter. "We're our own worst enemies at times," Adams said. "We had critical errors offensively. It's been the story of our season. We played well defensively, most of the year but offensively we do somethings well and other things not so well and we can't seem to put it together."