Week 2 Roundup: News from the night’s high school football games

By Ray Brewer (contact), Case Keefer (contact)

Published Friday, Sept. 3, 2010 | 10:45 p.m.

Updated Saturday, Sept. 4, 2010 | 1:26 a.m.

A non-league game in the beginning of September shouldn’t have this much significance.

Just don’t tell that to the football teams at Basic, Durango, Liberty and Palo Verde high schools. All four programs are involved in contests Friday night that could ultimately define their seasons.

Liberty has gone from one of the Las Vegas Valley’s worst teams to one of the best, and will be using its season opener against perennial power Palo Verde as a gauge to determine its improvements.

Several feel the Patriots will wind up being one of the Sunrise Region’s best teams — a fact that could be confirmed tonight.

The game, however, isn’t the lone one of interest on the slate.

Basic travels to Durango in a game of talented teams looking for a signature win. Despite graduating most of its key performers from last year’s squad that reached the state semifinals, the Wolves opened last week with a blowout victory against 3A Boulder City High.

The competition will be better this week against a Durango team that erased a two-touchdown deficit in the second half last week to beat defending Sunrise champion Del Sol. The Trailblazers Julio Mora and Donovan Smith will have a chance against Basic to prove last week wasn’t a fluke.

We’ll have reports from most of the valley’s large-school games. Keep checking back as the scores go final.

• Foothill wins second straight game by lopsided score

• Palo Verde claws out hard-fought victory against Liberty

• Western fights off Sunrise Mountain for first win

• Centennial improves to 2-0 with win against Green Valley

• Rancho blanks Sierra Vista for first win

• Silverado shuts out Desert Oasis to open season

• Boulder City notches first win in Arizona

• Small school Mountain View Christian scores win against Pahrump

• Virgin Valley falls to Cedar City

• Las Vegas beats Snow Canyon, 49-7

• Moapa Valley suffers lopsided defeat to Hurricane, Utah

• Basic erases deficit, makes statement with win against Durango