Lake Havasu High School’s season-long Southwest Region lead vanished in a night.

Friday night, Nov. 6, Senior Night at Estrella Foothills High School, to be precise.

Honorees Daylen Batchan and Amador “Henry” DeLeon scored six touchdowns to own the night, and the Knights, 48-28.

The senior wide receiver caught four first-half touchdown passes before giving way to his classmate at running back, who rushed for two more second-half rushing scores as the Wolves (2-0 region, 3-3 overall) turned the tables on Lake Havasu (3-1 region, 3-3 overall) in the 4A Conference.

"That's the craziness of 2020, the COVID year," Foothills head coach Derek Wahlstrom said. "The cool thing is, we're in a good position. Now it's a matter of taking care of business and doing what we're supposed to."

A third Estrella Foothills senior, quarterback Ty Perry, found Batchan three times and scored the go-ahead touchdown himself on a 10-yard keeper, all in the second quarter.

The power of these three playmakers ultimately overwhelmed Knights senior quarterback Donny Fitzgerald, who scored three touchdowns of his own but, down three more scores, was intercepted at midfield by Wolves senior defensive back Kalani Parco with three minutes remaining.

"They came out, they executed, and they got us," said Knights head coach Karl Thompson, still seeking Havasu's first region title in seven seasons. "They're a great team, and you can't give great teams like that opportunities."

It took less than two-and-a-half minutes for the Wolves to strike first, as Perry found Batchan from 25 yards out. Fitzgerald would retaliate on a more deliberate 12-play drive that consumed 80 yards and nearly seven minutes of first-quarter clock. 

However, after the Knights defense forced the Wolves to punt on their next possession, Fitzgerald would also fumble away what would prove to be Havasu’s only opportunity to lead Foothills.

"We had too many turnovers in the first half," Knights head coach Karl Thompson said. "Those early-on opportunities changed the momentum of the game."

After recovering on the Knights’ 23, the Wolves struck for the first seven of their 27 second-quarter points, as Batchan stretched the football over the goal line on a 19-yard pass over the middle from Perry.

But Fitzgerald took less than two minutes and 80 yards to strike back, capping the sixth play of his drive with a four-yard keeper up the middle before Perry took over, needing only four plays to go 65 yards and find Batchan again on a crossing pattern with 3:16 to play in the first half.

"Our offense is predicated on our quarterback making good choices...[and] taking the ball to where they're not," Wahlstrom explained. "Our o[ffensive] line did a fantastic job of protecting him."

Smelling blood, the Wolves defense sacked Fitzgerald and forced a fumble that sophomore Ty Huggins recovered at the Havasu 39. The very next play, DeLeon’s upfield block sprang Batchan, who made three defenders miss down the sideline to take a commanding 34-14 halftime lead.

"His biggest contribution was probably the last score of the last half," Wahlstrom said of DeLeon's block. "It was all hustle; it was all heart."

The Wolves returned the opening kickoff of the second half to their own 41, and DeLeon, who ran for 140 yards and a touchdown on just 19 carries Oct. 30 in their first region win over Buckeye High School, took over.

"He was pretty big last week, which was why they were very much keying on Henry DeLeon," Wahlstrom said. "Which opened it up for Daylen. Ty did a great job of distributing the ball to whoever was open."

His receptions of 13 and 14 yards brought Foothills to the Havasu 30, then his eight-yard carry on first down set up a screen pass DeLeon turned into a 17-yard reception and a first and goal at the Knights’ 5. He would run it in off right tackle the next play.

An interception of Fitzgerald in their end zone spelled doom on the next drive, and although he had one more keeper for six points in him, and sophomore Isaac Stopke carved further into the lead with a 14-yard run, DeLeon put the Knights away a minute into the fourth quarter.

His three-yard carry, capping a 10-play, 56-yard drive, showed Havasu that Foothills could grind out the win too. 

With a win in its season finale Friday, Nov. 13, Estrella Foothills will not only secure a region title but go undefeated in region play--joining the ranks of just five other postseason-eligible 4A teams still active in that pursuit, despite coronavirus-abbreviated schedules.

But they will have to win on the road at Senior Night at Deer Valley High School, which Havasu previously dispatched, 54-28, Oct. 30.

"We're looking forward to the challenge," Wahlstrom said. "Deer Valley's going to be a great challenge for us."

Lake Havasu can still win the region but will need help from their previous victims, the Skyhawks. The Knights have no further say in the Southwest Region outcome, as their season finale will be Senior Night against Vista Grande High School, from the Copper Sky Region.

"We start seven sophomores," Thompson said. "Now we're counting on a little luck for Deer Valley. With a win next week, we could still sneak in the back door."

They are two of four Southwest Region teams with 3-3 overall records, opening the door for 4A teams with even sub-.500 region records to keep their eye on the AIA’s power rankings, which will debut Tuesday, Nov. 10, for a potential postseason berth. 

"If you had asked me that during the summer? Not a chance, with everything going on," Thompson said of his team's postseason potential. "The effort was there, our guys didn't give up, and that's been our m[odus] o[perandi] the whole time. We've been excited about that."