By Don Ketchum

Peoria Centennial’s football team did not dominate its game against visiting Glendale Apollo as many expected on Thursday night (Sept. 15) – far from it.

The Coyotes did just enough to secure a 40-28 victory in the matchup of unbeaten teams in Division II, Section I.

Centennial improved to 4-0, while Apollo fell to 3-1.

Zach Hoffpauir scored four touchdowns and Jalen Ortiz added two more scores while rushing for 163 yards. Ortiz left the game with leg cramps in the third quarter and did not return.

Apollo’s leader, senior quarterback Jonathan Brown, had been averaging about 100 yards rushing with healthy passing numbers entering the game.

But he finished with 64 yards on the ground, just two in the second half after scoring two touchdowns in the first half. He completed 14 of 21 passes for 264 yards and a TD.

Centennial had a 20-14 halftime lead, and Hoffpauir punched the ball in to cap a 12-play, 80-yard drive on Centennial’s first series of the second half.

The score was 26-14 when Apollo’s Joe Cortez returned the ensuing kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown to make it 26-21.

Hoffpauir scored on another 1-yard run to make it 34-21, one play after he caught a middle screen pass from quarterback Justin Sanchez and raced 67 yards to the Apollo 1.

“That play hurt them some,’’ Centennial coach Richard Taylor said of the screen.

Apollo couldn’t quite regain its footing after that.

Taylor said Brown “is a very good player, and their multiple formations gave us trouble. Our defense has definitely got to do some work.’’

He then proceeded to give his team a stern postgame speech, letting his players know he wasn’t happy.

Apollo coach Zack Threadgill acted more like the winning coach.

“I’m proud of the way our kids competed,’’ he said. “But there are no moral victories. We didn’t want to just hang with them. The kids believed they could win.’’

Threadgill lost quite a few players to graduation, but said his team began to mold into a strong unit with tireless work during the summer and early weight-lifting sessions at 6:30 a.m.