Prep football: Colts pick up pace, turnovers in second half

The Cottonwood Colts defeated the Viewmont Vikings, 23-7, in the first round of the Class 5A football playoffs on Friday.

The Vikings were able to keep the game close until the fourth quarter after several second-half turnovers finally overcame them. Nadan Hosea led the Colts on offense, rushing for 195 yards and a touchdown on a season-high 40 carries, as the Colts ran away with the win late in the game.

"When I'm told to run the ball I just do what I do. I run the ball," said Hosea.

The first quarter went scoreless with little success moving the ball from either teams. It wasn't until the Colts found their running game in the second quarter that they took the lead. Cottonwood's Crosby Jensen found Jason

Lundquist wide open in the back of the end zone to cap a 13-play, 81-yard drive. After kicking a field on their next the Vikings got themselves right back into the game with an 80 yard touchdown from running back Anthony Tuli.

Coming out of halftime, the Vikings appeared to be ready to take the lead when the first of several costly turnovers occurred. On the Cottonwood 15-yard line, Viewmont quarterback Jeremy Lieber threw a backward lateral to the flat where it was dropped and recovered by Tuinei Tama. On Viewmont's next drive, Tuli fumbled on the Vikings' 18-yard line to end the third quarter.

For much of the fourth quarter the Vikings saw a lot more of Hosea as the Colts easily moved the ball on their final two touchdowns;

another Jensen pass to Chandler Hudson and Hosea's 17 yard run.

"We knew we were going to have our hands full," said coach Cecil Thomas. "It was a real good gut-check mark to play a complete game and come out of it with a victory."