Prep football: Darts hit paydirt

Members of the Davis football team celebrate after winning the game against Hunter at Rice-Eccles Stadium Friday November 13, 2009. Davis won the game 41-17. (Chris Detrick / The Salt Lake Tribune )

For two quarters, Hunter was right in the mix. In control, even. Jake Jex had just connected on a 36-yard field goal and the Wolverines were on the charge with a chance to take a lead into the locker room.

But one play would turn the tide.

Late in the second quarter, Hunter quarterback Brett Lunceford tossed a lateral pass to Brayden Loertscher who threw it downfield, five yards past his intended receiver and directly into the hands of Davis' defensive back Kyler Sprague at the 20-yard line.

Backed into a third down and five situation, Davis quarterback Gavin Fowler's five-yard touchdown run with 44.2 seconds left in the half and carried that momentum to a 41-17 semifinal win over the Wolverines at Rice Eccles Stadium on Friday night.

"That turned everything around," said Davis' running back Tanner Hinds, who rushed for 187 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries. "Our offense was able to go out and make a big play."

It wouldn't be the last.

The Darts opened the floodgates on the Wolverines in the second half, storming down field on three consecutive drives to turn a 21-10 advantage into a dominant 41-10 route by the final minutes of the game.

But the Darts were not without error.

While Hinds was next to unstoppable in the first half -- rushing for two big touchdown runs of 38 and 67 yards in the first quarter -- he was also imperfect, fumbling the ball three times in the first half. All

"We've got to change that next time," said Hinds. "We can't have any turnovers. We have to hold on to the ball."

In this instance, however, a few first-half miscues wouldn't be enough to derail Davis.

The Wolverines would come charging again midway through the third quarter, only to be stopped in their tracks on a fourth down and 1 at the 10-yard line. The Darts would

For the remainder, the Wolverine's defensive line was, well, defenseless against the precise passing of Fowler, who completed a perfect 9-of-9 passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns.

"I'm proud. We were focused and were able to overcome some early miscues," said Davis coach Ryan Bishop.

"We've still got a lot of things to fix, but we can play another week."