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Juan Diego running back Tana Vea knew he had to step up and make adjustments after halftime in the Soaring Eagle's Class 3A semifinal game against Wasatch on Thursday.
But when receiver Keegan Andersen left the game with an injury in the third quarter, he knew his role needed to be even bigger.
"Coach told us we need to wear them down," Vea said. "When Keegan went down, our aerial game wouldn't be there anymore. I needed to pick up my legs and sustain the blocks."
Vea had a presence in the first half but he was simply undeniable in the second. He finished with 30 carries and 187 rushing yards and three touchdowns to help Juan Diego beat Wasatch 35-14 for its second consecutive trip the championship game.
"We tried to out-think ourselves in the first half and we just needed to go to our bread and butter," Juan Diego coach John Colosimo said. "Tana was huge."
Vea provided just the spark the Soaring Eagle needed in their run game in the second half. Juan Diego had just a 21-14 lead heading into halftime after Wasatch was able to find success in its spread offense.
But neither team could get anything going on offense in the third quarter. Then Vea took matters into his own hands. He scored the first touchdown of the second half with a 24-yard run about four minutes into the fourth. He solidified Juan Diego's win when he scored on a two-yard run less than a minute later.
Quarterback Cody Stevenson had confidence when
"You know he'll always give you extra yardage. You know he puts in the work," Stevenson said. "We just wanted to ram it down their throats."
» Juan Diego's Tana Vea finished with 187 yards on 30 carries and scored three touchdowns.
» The Soaring Eagle had 312 rushing yards against Wasatch.
» Vea scored two of his touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
