High Desert Sports Highlights: Apple Valley's late rally falls short against Upland

The Apple Valley football team wrapped up nonleague action with a 27-20 loss on the road against Upland on Friday night.

The Sun Devils entered the matchup as an underdog against Upland and nearly had a chance to tie the game in the final minute of the fourth quarter.

Upland took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter. The Sun Devils made it a one-point game as Zyron Belcher ran the ball in the endzone midway through the quarter.

However, Upland countered with a touchdown and led 13-6 after the first quarter. Upland eventually took a 27-6 lead before Apple Valley scored again.

Celie hit Dominic Bechtel for a touchdown midway through the third quarter, cutting Upland's lead to 27-13.

Then, the Sun Devils scored a touchdown in the fourth quarter, to pull within seven points.

The Sun Devils forced an Upland fumble, recovered by Xavier Salazar, with 3:35 left at the 35-yard-line.

“I can’t say enough about the defense on that last drive,” Apple Valley head coach Kyle Godfrey said. “They gave us a chance, getting the ball back and giving us a chance to score. A lot of teams would have folded in that situation with a team like Upland moving the ball. It happened to us against Chaparral, where we let them sore. That didn’t happen tonight and it’s a sign of the growth and maturity of this team to make that happen against a quality opponent.”

Celie hit Jarod Soria on two consecutive passes to put the Sun Devils up at midfield with just under three minutes left.

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But the Apple Valley sideline was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct, which resulted in a 15-yard penalty.

“We thought that Upland was offside and we lost our cool. We let the emotions get the best of us there and we paid for it with a 1st-and-25 situation,” Godfrey said.

The Sun Devils got the ball back near the original line of scrimmage but the Scots forced a turnover on downs after sacking Celie. Upland took over with just under a minute left and went into victory formation.

“Noah showed nothing but grit and determination tonight, knowing he’s got two backup offensive linemen, playing against that unreal defensive line from Upland,” Godfrey said. “Our kids played unbelievable football tonight. They are a special group. They are resilient and really had the utmost belief tonight that they could win against Upland.”

Celie ended the night completing 13 for 21 passes for 153 yards. He connected with Kayden Struebing on five passes for 89 yards, and also with Soria on five for 32 yards.

Aiden Sanchez led the ground game with 109 yards on 15 carries. Belcher took 13 carries for 54 yards and two touchdowns. Belcher also caught two passes for 36 yards.

The Sun Devils are off next week on a bye and return home to take on Sultana on Sept. 28 to begin Mojave River League action.

“This bye is huge for us because we have a few injuries that we will be able to let heal,” Godfrey said. “We are hoping to have three of our linemen back for us, some of our defensive backs. This bye is at a perfect time to rest us and focus on competing in the MRL, starting with Sultana. We know the receivers they have and the quarterback. We’re going to have our hands full.”

More: High Desert Football: Two-year unbeaten streak comes to an end for Oak Hills

Prep Girls Tennis

Silverado 14, Barstow 4

At Barstow, Olivia Ibarra swept in singles action to help lead the Hawks past the Aztecs on Thursday afternoon.

Ibarra swept with scores of 6-4, 6-4, 6-0. Silverado didn’t drop a set in doubles action as all three teams swept.

Ibarra also swept as the Hawks beat Adelanto 17-1 on Sept. 12.

Silverado (6-2, 4-0 Desert Sky League) is back in action on Tuesday at home against Victor Valley.

Oak Hills 17, Sultana 1

At Oak Hills, the Sultans improved to 1-1 in Mojave River League action with a victory over the Sultans on Thursday.

Jaselyn Montalvo and Hailey Serna both swept with three bagels, and Madyson Peters also swept in singles action with scores of 6-2, 6-2, 6-1.

Oak Hills also got sweeps from the doubles teams of Hayley Lazo and Valerie Torres (6-1, 6-0, 6-0) and Mylie Baneulos and Sarah Perez (6-1, 6-0, 7-5).

The Bulldogs began MRL action on Sept. 12 with a tiebreaker loss to Apple Valley. The Bulldogs lost 75-67 after being tied 9-9.

Lazo and Torres swept in doubles action with scores of 6-2, 6-2, 6-2.

Oak Hills heads to Burroughs on Tuesday afternoon.

Serrano 12, Hesperia 6

At Hesperia, the Diamondbacks kicked off Mojave River League action with a victory over the Scorpions on Sept. 12

Riley Tingesdahl and Rylie Widmer swept in doubles action with scores of 6-2, 6-4, 6-1.

The Diamondbacks are back in action Tuesday afternoon at Sultana.

Serrano Singles

Segall 2-6, 6-2, 6-3; Gowdy 0-6, 6-0, 6-2; Pearce 0-6, 6-4, 1-6.

Serrano Doubles 

Taylor-McGinty 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-0; Stoil-Canright 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-3; Tingesdahl-Widmer 6-2, 6-4, 6-1.

Prep Volleyball

Excelsior 3, AAE 0

At Victorville, the Eagles won their 11th game in a row, sweeping the Knights at home (25-18, 26-12, 25-17) on Thursday night.

Faith Di Mola led the offense for Excelsior with 10 kills, 10 digs, five aces, two blocks and an assist; Dominique Corradino added two aces, a kill, six assists and six digs; Carmen Barajas dished 16 assists with a kill, an ace and four digs; and Gianna Di Mola had two aces and 10 digs.

On Tuesday, the Eagles beat University Prep in four sets (25-9, 23-25, 25-23, 25-22) to begin Cross Valley League action.

Faith Di Mola led the offense with 14 kills, seven aces, 11 digs and a block; Barajas dished 27 assists with 10 aces, four kills and seven digs; and Keira Ortega added seven kills, six aces and 11 digs.

Excelsior (11-2, 2-0 CVL) are at the Cal City Tournament over the weekend and resume league action on Tuesday at home against CIMS.

Didn't see your team's scores in this roundup? All local varsity scores and results can be reported by email to Daily Press reporter Jose Quintero at JQuintero@VVDailyPress.com. You can also follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @J0seQuintero to report any results throughout the season.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: High Desert Sports Highlights: Apple Valley's late rally falls short