Broncos stampede Wolves 41-6

THE ROUND-UP
by Tad Barton
The San Juan Bronco football team wrapped up their 2A South Region schedule on Thursday, October 15 against the Wolves of Enterprise, UT.
The Broncos offense was dominant, as they wracked up over 500 yards of offense on their way to a 41-6 victory.
Not to be out done, the San Juan defense was solid all night, surrendering just one touchdown after a Wolf punt hit one of the Broncos and was recovered by Enterprise deep in San Juan territory.
The Broncos jumped out to an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter after scoring on a 68-yard run by Payton Palmer and a one-yard plunge by Bronz Eldredge.
Both PAT attempts by Aaron Mitchell sailed true through the uprights as San Juan took control of the game early.
Nathan Nielson kept things rolling for the Broncos in the second quarter when he scored on a 19-yard run. Once again, Mitchell’s PAT was good and San Juan led 21-0.
Enterprise would get on the board late in the first half after they recovered a muffed punt deep in Bronco territory and parlayed it into a touchdown.
The PAT by the Wolves’ kicker was no good, giving San Juan a 21-6 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, San Juan would score two more touchdowns. The first was courtesy of Kavika Su’eSu’e, who scored on a 23-yard run, and the second came via a pick six by Jaxon Lee.
Mitchell missed the first PAT, but was good on the second to give the Broncos a 34-6 lead heading into the final quarter.
The sixth and final touchdown for San Juan came in the fourth quarter when Palmer got behind center Lucas Giddings and scored on a quarterback sneak from the one-yard line. The PAT by Mitchell was good, giving the Broncos a 41-6 win over the Wolves.
As stated earlier in the article, San Juan’s offense amassed over 500 yards of offense. The Bronco rushing attack contributed 316 yards and 185 yards through the air.
Leading the way on the ground is Palmer, who ran for 112 yards on 11 carries. He also scored two touchdowns. Jay McDonald carried the ball eight times for 62 yards, while Su’eSu’e finished the game with 59 yards and a touchdown on six attempts.
Senior Bronz Eldredge chipped in an additional 36 yards and a score on seven carries. He was just 11 yards ahead of Nathan Nielson, who ran the ball five times for 25 yards and a touchdown.
Rounding out the ground game are Dylan Ivins’ three carries for 18 yards, Baylr Eldredge’s one rush for three yards and Mason Bethea, who finished with one attempt for one yard.
Palmer hooked up with five different receivers during the game and accounted for 172 passing yards on 12 of 22 passing.
Catching Palmer’s passes are Bronz Eldredge, who led all receivers with 101 yards on five catches. Su’eSu’e and Max Slavens each pulled in three passes, for 35 and 21 yards, respectively. Lee had one grab for 14 yards and Nielson had one catch for three yards. The remaining 13 yards came from Baylr Eldredge, who was one for one after connecting with fellow sophomore Jaden Torgerson.
Bronz Eldredge led San Juan defensively with 12 tackles. He was followed by Su’eSu’e, who had five stops.
Three Broncos tallied four tackles each, including: Jaxon Lee, who also had an interception and a defensive touchdown, and Peter Shumway and Brendon Pugh, who each recorded a sack as well.
Slavens, McDonald and Baylr Eldredge each finished with three take downs and Eldredge also had an interception.
A host of Broncos finished the game with two tackles each. They are Nielson, Palmer, Carver Black, Adrian Bitsinnie, Reilly Myrick and Elliot Jones, who also had a sack, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble as well.
Coleman Black, Jens Jones, Bethea and Ivins each contributed one tackle.
San Juan will be off this week with a bye for the first round of the 2A State playoffs. They will play the winner between North Sevier and Summit Academy, who play this weekend. That game will be held on either Friday, October 30 or Saturday the 31st. It will be a Quarter-Final matchup held in Blanding.
Volleyball
The Lady Broncos volleyball team played in two games this week. The first game was played against Grand in Moab, UT on October 13. San Juan lost that match in three sets, 20-25, 20-25, 19-25.
Bodell Nielson led the Broncos with three aces and 11 assists. Krista Grover paced San Juan with kills, finishing with seven, while Nani Benalie topped all Broncos with 20 digs.
In their second game of the week, San Juan traveled to Monticello to take on the Lady Buckaroos.
Monticello bested San Juan earlier this year and did so again last Wednesday night, defeating the Broncos 15-25, 18-25, 20-25.
Jamie Meyer led San Juan from the service line with two aces. Meyer and Keya Black combined for 14 kills, seven each to lead the Broncos’ attack at the net.
Benalie once again set the pace for San Juan with 14 digs, while Nielson dished out 22 assists.
San Juan hosts Emery Thursday night, October 22. Matches begin at 3:30 p.m. with the C-team followed by the JV, and the Varsity match is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.