Valley Christian leads Clovis Christian when game called

Before nature forced the cancellation of the game with lightning and possible tornadic activity, Valley Christian unleashed a storm of its own on Clovis Christian Friday night at Jim Hill Field.

Valley Christian took advantage of three Clovis Christian turnovers and a solid running game to take a 26-0 halftime lead before the referees decided to call the game for safety reasons.

The game will not be rescheduled, according to Clovis Christian coach Greg Darden.

For the second straight game Clovis Christian could not maintain possession of the ball. Valley forced the Eagles to commit three turnovers in the half, which was the main concern for Darden.

“We’re still learning to trust each other and control the ball,” Darden said.

Clovis Christian turned the ball over six times last week in a lopsided loss to Gateway Christian.

Junior running back Jesse Leonard’s 25-yard touchdown run put the Lions on top 6-0 early. The Eagles fumbled the subsequent kickoff, which led to a James Perez 22-yard touchdown sprint.

After taking advantage of the early gifts, the Lions (1-0) relied on Perez and the defense’s strong play.

“He’s our workhorse right now,” Valley head coach Mick Reeves said of Perez, whofinished with 57 yards on nine carries. “We were trying to run sweeps and dives at their defense.”

On fourth-and-4 on the Eagles 31-yard line early in the second quarter, Perez displayed his dominance as he rushed up the middle through the Clovis Christian line for a gain of six yards and a first down.

Perez rushed for 253 yards on 20 carries last week against Floyd.

Despite giving up 26 first-half points, Darden rated the Eagles defense a “B-” and said when the team finally settled down the defensive play was strong.

The only bright moment for the Eagles offense came late in the second quarter as senior running back Mike King swept left for 24-yard gain.

“I saw open field and I took off,” King said. “That’s what I do.”

King said the defense did “pretty good” after it calmed down, but stressed the need for the offense to improve on fundamentals.