Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

high school football:

Mulcock, defense help Moapa Valley roll in Hammer Game

2014 High School Football

Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun

From left, Moapa Valley High School football players Andrew Huerta, Zach Hymas, Cole Mulcock and R.J. Hubert July 21, 2014.

Cole Mulcock is one of many weapons on the perimeter for Moapa Valley.

Tonight, the senior receiver turned the Hammer Game into his personal showcase.

Mulcock caught eight passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns, Moapa Valley’s defense produced five interceptions, and the Pirates rolled to a 35-7 home win over Virgin Valley in one of the state’s most historic rivalries.

“With having (Mulcock) and R.J. (Hubert), we have two serious threats, and it makes it really tough for defenses to stop both of them,” Moapa Valley coach Brent Lewis said. “It seems like (Mulcock) has been on fire, and our quarterbacks have found him.”

Two signal callers found Mulcock for scoring strikes, with Zach Hymas throwing a 65-yard touchdown pass to Mulcock in the first quarter and Nate Cox a 31-yard TD to Mulcock in the third.

Of course, picking off five passes helps to win a rivalry game. The Pirates’ defense saw Derek Cope snare two interceptions, and Kaleb Bodily, Justin Gentry and Jay Mortensen each had one.

Garrett May had a fumble recovery for the Pirates’ defense, which forced six turnovers.

Moapa Valley ran its record to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in the Division I-A Sunrise, but Lewis said much of the win’s significance was in the rivalry game so steeped in history.

“There’s such a history between our valleys,” he said. “This thing goes back so long that my dad played in the rivalry. As far as I’m concerned, there’s not a better rivalry in the state. Both schools are so classy, both want to win so bad, both have a history of winning. It’s special.”

Bodily, the Sun’s reigning Player of the Week, carried 15 times for 87 yards, including TD runs of 4 and 5 yards.

Andrew Huerta added 51 yards on five carries.

Both Moapa Valley quarterbacks played well, with Hymas completing 7 of 15 passes for 133 yards and a TD and Cox going 6-for-9 passing for 116 yards and another TD.

Sterling Simmons ran for a 19-yard TD for Moapa Valley, which got 40 yards on three catches from Hubert.

Junior Paongo led Virgin Valley (3-4, 1-3) with 17 carries for 80 yards, including an 11-yard TD in the third quarter.

“You’ve got to give credit to Virgin Valley for coming and playing us tough,” Lewis said. “We had to coach our butts off tonight. I’m proud of our kids.”

Tristan Aird can be reached at 702-259-8829 or [email protected]. Follow Tristan on Twitter at twitter.com/tristanaird.

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