This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
This one was over by the end of the first quarter, even if the remainder was played as a formality.
Using the arm of Chipper Lucero and the receiving talents of Ammon Barker and Harrison Handley, Alta dominated Cottonwood 48-12 to move into the postseason in style while throwing the Colts to the brink of elimination Wednesday.
The Hawks finished the regular season at 8-2 and enter the playoffs as one of the teams in Class 5A with a chance at challenging Jordan High for state supremacy. Cottonwood, the team with Alabama commit Cooper Bateman at quarterback, will face Brighton on Monday in a play-in game.
"This was a great game for us," Hawks coach Bob Stephens said. "We came out and executed. The offense was crisp, and the best thing is that we emerge from the game with no injuries. I'm pleased with how everything turned out tonight."
Lucero, Alta's junior quarterback, tossed five scoring passes in the first half. Two of those went to Handley, a Utah commit. Two more went to Barker, the 6-foot-5 wide receiver with a heavy smattering of Division I offers on his plate.
"We wanted to come out and play well, and I think we did that," Barker said. "I thought Chipper played great. He made the right reads, and he made the right throws. He was a real factor for us tonight."
The Hawks scored three times in the first quarter and three more times in the second period. Alta played its second-stringers for the entire second half after opening a 41-0 lead at the half.
Bateman ran for a touchdown and threw for another score. But the Hawks held Bateman in check for the majority of the night.
Cottonwood didn't run the ball, and that put Bateman in position to have to make difficult plays by himself.
Twitter: @tonyaggieville —
• Alta led 41-0 at halftime
• Chipper Lucero threw five touchdown passes
• The Hawks improve to 8-2 on the season