Class 1A State Championship Breakdown
#1 Buena Vista (12-0) vs #3 Paonia (11-1) Saturday 1:00pm
There are two teams fighting it out for the state championship that are very use to being in spot light. Paonia is your two time defending state champions and Buena Vista has been either one game or two games away from winning a state title and actually has lost to Paonia to end their tournament run the past two season.
Buena Vista kept things rolling breaking the 40 point mark for the 11th straight time. They blanked Crowley County 42 to 0. Their offense was once again led by their rushing attack. They ran for 241 yards on 48 carries and 4 touchdowns and threw for 72 yards on 7 of 15 passes but threw 2 INTS. Buena Vista is led on offense by Keegan Wentz who has thrown for 790 yards and rushed for 1844 yards in the regular season and in the playoffs he has thrown for 228 yards 1 touchdown and 2 INTS and ran for 344 yards and 6 touchdowns. On Defense they snagged their fourth game in a row of under 6 points and forced 6 turnovers, 2 INTS and 3 fumbles.
Paonia looked to be in trouble of not reaching the finals against Resurrection Christian. Paonia was trailing 15 to 7 going into the fourth quarter before scoring 14 points and securing a 21 to 15 victory. On offense Paonia was able to attack through the air and on the ground. They threw for 127 yards 1 touchdown on 7 of 12 passing and ran for 259 yards 2 touchdowns on 49 carries. On Offense they are led by Taylor Walters. He has thrown for 718 yards 11 touchdowns and only 3 INTS and has ran for 2106 yards and 27 touchdowns. On defense this was the first game in 4 games allowing over 7 points but their defense stepped up big not allowing a single point in the second half. They forced 3 INTS and was the critical part of the turnaround.
Buena Vista is looking to finally take that next step and grab a state championship. Paonia is looking to join the ranks of Akron and Limon and snag a third state championship. They have 3 common opponents they are Centauri, Hotchkiss, and Ellicott. They won all of their games against them and none were close most were by 28 points. These offense are both led by standout senior QB’s and are honestly the front runners for MVP in 1A. Both of these teams rely on their defense but each have an effective offense. For Paonia to pull the upset they need to limit turnovers. Buena Vista offense feeds off of turnovers and usually turns them into points. Paonia must keep the ball on offense and finish drives on their side. For Buena Vista to win they need to keep maximizing off turnovers and run the ball effective. Crowley County picked off 2 INTS so it showed that Buena Vista passing game can be slowed but you must stop the run. Buena Vista is the favorite in this game due to the amount of blowouts they have this season but that could also be their doom. Paonia has played in a number of close games and that will benefit them in this game. I have Buena Vista winning by 14 points but if Paonia limits turnovers and plays great defense can see them winning this game.
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