Sundevils, Gators battle for first

Spencer Patterson

Friday, Oct. 2, 1998 | 10 a.m.

For the second straight week, Eldorado High School will be home to a critical Sunrise Division battle tonight at 7 p.m.

Seven days after posting a key 36-15 victory over Chaparral, the Sundevils will host Green Valley with sole possession of first place in the conference on the line.

"We know we have a major hurdle to get over," said Eldorado coach Ken Trujillo, whose club has lost four straight to the Gators. "My kids need to think of it as a playoff game."

"Whoever wins will obviously be in great shape for the conference championship," Green Valley coach Larry Thomas said. "That puts pressure on both groups of kids to step up."

After opening their league slate with lopsided wins over Valley and Basic, the Sundevils (4-1, 3-0) are in the midst of a three-game home stand that will likely decide the Sunrise champion. Next week, Eldorado will host Las Vegas, which trails the leaders by a single game.

Last week against Chaparral, Trujillo opened up his club's passing game, allowing junior quarterback Arlie Daniel to complete 12-of-22 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown.

"I know Chaparral would be tough inside, so we tried to stretch it outside and it worked," Trujillo said.

Likewise, the Gators (4-1, 3-0) went to the air in their 33-9 win over Silverado last Friday, with Gabe Amiling catching three touchdown passes to lead the way.

"They put nine guys up front, with one-on-one coverage on our receivers and no one on the tight end," Thomas said. "Hopefully, this week we'll be more balanced."

Other games with Sunrise playoff implications tonight have Silverado at Las Vegas and Chaparral at Basic. Assuming the Wildcats get past the winless Skyhawks, the Cowboys and Wolves will be playing to remain among the top four in the division.

In tonight's top Sunset Division matchup, Cimarron-Memorial (3-2, 2-1) will host Western (4-1, 2-0) with second place in the conference at stake. The Spartans will try to recover from a stunning one-point loss at Bishop Gorman last week.

"The team that makes the least amount of mistakes should win," Cimarron coach Greg Spencer said. "You've got to score when you have opportunities, and we didn't do that last week."

In other week six action, Valley hosts Rancho in a battle of winless teams, No. 2 Cheyenne plays at Bonanza, Clark travels to Durango, Bishop Gorman visits nonleague foe Mojave, Palo Verde entertains The Meadows and out-of-town opponent Dayton plays at Boulder City.