Prep football: Wasatch takes early lead, holds off Bears

Heber City » Two interceptions. Three touchdowns. Four consecutive scoring drives after turning the ball over on downs on its opening possession. Everything was going right for Wasatch in the first quarter of its 3A quarterfinal 48-32 win over Bear River on Friday night.

But as the Bears encroached on the Wasps sizable lead in the second half, it would come down to one player to lock down the win: Mike Davis.

Wasps quarterback Payton Davis found Mike Davis twice in the end zone in the first quarter, and he would turn to him again, late.

In the fourth quarter, Payton Davis relied on Mike Davis to reignite the Wasps offense, this time with quick passes underneath the line.

And when Mike Davis started running, there wasn't much the Bears could do to hold him back as he raced down the right sideline for two touchdowns for a combined 148 yards.

"I was tired, but never tired enough to slow down," said Davis. "I just had the will to get in [the end zone]."

But Bear River refused to go away quietly.

The Bears gritty special teams effort, highlighted by Dax Cederholm's 90-yard kick return midway through the third quarter, nearly made it a one-touchdown game.

But the Wasps defense held tough, stopping the Bears on three of four drives in the red zone in the second half. When matched with the Bears three-consecutive misses on extra-point attempts, Mike Davis' final

65 yard catch and run down the right sideline provided the exclamation on the win.

Now, the Wasps direct their attention to Thursday's matchup against defending 3A champion Juan Diego at Rice-Eccles Stadium.

"We're not content with settling for final four," said Payton Davis. "Anything can happen there. We want to win the thing."