Richfield rolls past Templars 49-7

RICHFIELD—Richfield scored on its first two possessions and led 35-7 at halftime Friday on the way to a 49-7 win over Manti in 3A South football.

The Wildcats (5-1, 3-0) scored twice in the first quarter and three more times in the second. Quarterback Cordon White ran for three touchdowns, scoring from 2, 1 and 4 yards.

Wide receiver Trey Yardley threw a touchdown pass to Shane Pearson in the first quarter, caught a scoring pass from White in the second and broke an 89-yard touchdown run in the third. Running back Colton White added a 43-yard scoring run, and Richfield’s kicker made all seven extra points.

Manti’s only score came with 33 seconds left in the first quarter, when Quarterback Kingston Wright hit Stetson Thomson on a 58-yard touchdown pass. Tyler Steinfeldt kicked the extra point.

The Wildcats led 14-7 after the first quarter, then scored 21 unanswered points in the second to take a 35-7 lead into halftime.

Wright completed 10 of 20 passes for 123 yards for Richfield with one touchdown and two interceptions, and ran 11 times for 26 yards.

For Manti, Thomson caught four passes for 75 yards and carried 15 times for 59 yards. Hudson Crane caught five passes for 58 yards and intercepted a Richfield pass. Ben Taulapapa added 43 yards on 15 carries.

Manti finished with 262 yards of offense, 134 passing and 128 rushing, but averaged just 3.1 yards a carry. Richfield intercepted two Wright passes and recorded three sacks.

Tevon Vakautakakala led the Templar defense with seven tackles, followed by Jacob Cox with five, Kolten Layton with four and Wally Everitt and Hudson Crane with three each.

Manti (1-5) has lost four straight and has allowed 38 points or more in five of its six games. The Templars finished as the 3A state runner-up last season with a 9-4 record. Their only win this season was a 54-7 rout at Juan Diego on Aug. 21.

Manti travels to Blanding on Friday to face San Juan (5-1) at 7 p.m. in a non-region game.