Las Vegas blows out Eldorado

Spencer Patterson

Friday, Sept. 10, 1999 | 10:09 a.m.

With their week one upset win over highly touted Cheyenne fresh in their minds, the Eldorado Sundevils came into Thursday night's game against No. 3 Las Vegas hoping to pull off another shocker.

Those hopes were dashed just moments after kickoff, however, as the visiting Wildcats scored 21 unanswered points in the game's first five minutes en route to an ugly, 67-20 Sunrise Division victory.

"We got two years' worth of breaks early in this one," said Las Vegas coach Kris Cinkovich, whose club improved to 3-0 (1-0 Sunrise) with the win. "We lost close games to them the last two years, and I think (our players) were sick of it."

Las Vegas first got on the board with 9:38 to play in the opening quarter, gang-tackling Eldorado punter Brandon Owens in the end zone for a safety.

On the succeeding kickoff, Wildcat Harry Mills danced his way for a 69-yard touchdown return and suddenly, the visitors had a 9-0 lead without having run an offensive play.

"This was an unusual deal," Cinkovich said. "We got a ton of breaks, and we took advantage of them."

Things went from bad to worse for the Sundevils (1-2, 0-1 Sunrise) seconds later, when the Wildcats recovered a Steven Jackson fumble and converted the very next play into a touchdown -- courtesy of a 33-yard pass from Anthony Marini to Mills.

Less than two minutes after that, Las Vegas took advantage of another botched Eldorado punt, forcing an Owens fumble at the 1-yard line. Las Vegas' Blake Williams took the ball into the end zone for another bizarre Wildcat score, giving the visitors a 21-0 lead with 7:28 remaining in the first quarter.

With Eldorado starting punter Arlie Daniel -- also the team's top quarterback -- nursing a leg injury, the Wildcats continued to bring pressure on fourth down, ultimately scoring another safety on the Sundevils' third misplayed punt of the night.

"We had planned if Daniel wasn't punting to go after it," Cinkovich said. "Our kids believe in their block, and they got the job done."

The Wildcats' offense also got the job done, as Marini finished 11-of-17 for 223 yards and four touchdowns -- two apiece to wideouts Anthony Park and Milles.

Starting tailback Coy Boykin also had a solid game, amassing 75 yards on just 10 carries. Even backup quarterback Zack Eukel got into the act, rushing for 43 yards and a touchdown in limited duty.

Eldorado's Daniel, who played quarterback for much of the game despite his injury, tossed a pair of touchdowns -- but they came long after the outcome had been decided. He was also sacked five times on the night.

And the Sundevils' ground game, which carried them to the victory over Cheyenne three weeks ago, was shut down completely by an explosive Las Vegas defense -- which held top rusher Steven Jackson to just 13 yards on 18 carries.

"We'll get pushed and our time will come," Cinkovich said. "We'll have to answer when it does."