Faith Lutheran wins thriller on opening night — PHOTOS
Caden Chittenden just missed a 50-yard field goal before halftime that would have given Faith Lutheran a two-possession lead over Palo Verde in the season opener Friday night.
With a chance to win the game in the final seconds of the fourth quarter, the Crusaders’ senior kicker didn’t miss another opportunity.
Chittenden drilled a 30-yard field goal as time expired to give Faith Lutheran a 24-21 home win over Palo Verde.
“Kicking is 90 percent mental, so I had to go in there and know I was going to make it,” Chittenden said. “I knew I was going to make it.”
The start of the game was delayed by over an hour due to weather on a night when several games around the valley were canceled.
“It was a tough game. That was a very tough game,” Faith Lutheran coach Mike Sanford said. “I was just excited that our guys showed the poise that they did and came back and won that game.”
Faith Lutheran (1-0) relied on both of its junior quarterbacks, Alex Rogers and Garyt Odom, the son of UNLV football coach Barry Odom, who both made crucial plays in the second half.
Rogers had runs of 14 yards and seven yards on the final drive to get the Crusaders into field-goal range.
Odom threw a pair of interceptions. Palo Verde (0-1) capitalized on Odom’s second turnover when junior quarterback Crew Dannels connected with senior tight end Jevon Padilla to give the Panthers a 21-14 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Odom redeemed himself later in the fourth when he connected with senior wide receiver Mason Aday on a 25-yard pass to tie the game at 21.
“This is both of their first times that they’ve played Nevada varsity football,” Sanford said. “They’ll grow and learn from this. Having two quarterbacks, the quality of them and the attitude that they bring and leadership is tremendous. That’s why I played both of them.”
The delay didn’t rattle Faith Lutheran early, as it forced Palo Verde to a three-and-out on the game’s opening drive. Rogers then connected with Aday on the Crusaders’ opening drive to give them a 7-0 lead.
Faith Lutheran’s defense forced another three-and-out, and a poor Palo Verde punt set the Crusaders up at the 15-yard line.
On his first drive, Odom took the direct snap and ran through the middle of Palo Verde’s defense for a 15-yard touchdown.
Neither team’s offense found much success moving the ball during the rest of the first half.
Furious Hoskins gave Palo Verde a much-needed spark late in the second quarter, returning a punt 60 yards to set the Panthers up at the Faith Lutheran 10-yard line.
Two plays later, junior running back Bryant Johnson scored from three yards out, and the Panthers went into halftime trailing 14-7.
Johnson later added another 3-yard rushing score for Palo Verde.
Faith Lutheran next hosts Desert Pines, which had its Week 1 game against Spring Valley canceled, at 7 p.m. Friday. Palo Verde hosts Centennial at 6 p.m. Friday.
“They’ve put a lot of work in,” Sanford said. “It’s awesome when you put in a lot of work and you see the payoff.”
Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.
