Key victories clear up prep playoff picture

Spencer Patterson

Monday, Oct. 4, 1999 | 10:05 a.m.

With three weeks left in the regular season, the prep playoff picture has finally started to crystallize.

On Friday night, several area squads posted critical wins to solidify their postseason chances and deal critical blows to their opponents.

In the Sunrise Division, No. 1 Las Vegas High seized control of the race for the conference's top seed with a 39-14 win over previously undefeated Silverado. The Wildcats (6-0, 4-0) now lead both the Skyhawks and Eldorado by one game and have already beaten both of those teams this year.

Eldorado's hard-fought 17-14 win at Rancho puts the Sundevils in position to claim the No. 2 or No. 3 slot, which could come down to next week's matchup between the Sundevils and Silverado.

The race for the Sunrise's fourth and final playoff berth appears to be a two-horse race between Chaparral and Valley. The Cowboys moved to 2-2 in the division with a 35-19 win at Green Valley, while the Vikings kept their chances afloat with a key 35-14 win at Basic -- a club that came into week six with postseason aspirations of its own.

"We knew we were even (with Basic) going in, plus it was our homecoming game, so I was worried about the kids having too much emotion," first-year Valley coach Greg Sellers said. "But our kids played well, and now we're exactly where we wanted to be."

The race for the final Sunrise playoff spot could be decided next week, when Chaparral plays at Valley, although Rancho could play the spoiler role, because both the Cowboys and Vikings have games remaining against the Rams.

Over in the Sunset Division, defending state champion Cimarron-Memorial extended its winning streak to 11 games, dating to the 1998 regular season. The Spartans (6-0, 5-0) had no problem with Bonanza, downing the Bengals 34-6 on the road to edge closer to the conference's No. 1 seed.

Bishop Gorman stayed one game behind Cimarron, courtesy of a 27-22 win at Mojave, while Durango did likewise with a 16-7 win at Cheyenne.

For the Trailblazers, the win came one week after their first loss of the season -- a 21-13 defeat at Cimarron. According to Durango coach John Mausbach, his club gained confidence despite that tough loss.

"Coming off that Cimarron, the kids thought we outplayed them," Mausbach said. "We felt if we don't turn the ball over, we beat them. All week we knew we had to get back on track."

The Blazers did just that, rallying behind a defense that has allowed just 20 offensive points to traditional Sunset powers Western, Cimarron and Cheyenne this season.

Perhaps more importantly, Durango's win puts Cheyenne in danger of missing the playoffs altogether just one year after the Desert Shields went 9-0 in the regular season. Three consecutive league losses have dropped Cheyenne behind Clark and into a tie with Western in the race for the division's final berth, and the Shields face a tough task this week -- a game at unbeaten Cimarron.

Also on Friday night, Centennial became the first of the area's three new Class 4A schools to win a varsity football game. The Bulldogs did it against fellow newcomer Foothill, posting a 41-18 road victory.

"For us, it's just like a zone or state championship," Centennial coach Greg Murphy said. "We said we want to win the independent championship, and we set that as a goal."

The Bulldogs will try to achieve that goal on Oct. 22, when they will host Desert Pines, Southern Nevada's third new school. Desert Pines plays at Foothill on Oct. 15.