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Highland • Led by quarterback Talmage Gunther, the Lone Peak Knights easily took care of business against their rivals, cruising past the American Fork Cavemen, 48-21.
Gunther was the man of the night, responsible for 310 of the 419 total offensive yards for the Knights.
Running back Britton Bettridge got the Knights (7-0) on the scoreboard first, running the ball in from 5 yards out late in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead. Gunther scored his first touchdown of the game on a 42-yard run in the second quarter. A missed extra point kept the lead at 13-0 in favor of the Knights. Less than a minute later, Lone Peak added a couple more points when a bad snap by American Fork sent the ball into the end zone for a Lone Peak safety.
The Cavemen (4-3) were able to keep it close going into the half as quarterback Tanner Smith connected with receiver Ashton Coleman with a minute left to make it 15-7.
The Knights scored on their first offensive possession of the second half. Gunther's short quarterback sneak put the Knights ahead 22-7.
Another miscue by the Cavemen offense in their own end zone gave two more points to the home team, making it 24-7 with 7 minutes left in the third quarter. Minutes later, Gunther got his third and final rushing touchdown of the game, running it in from 25 yards out to give the Knights a comfortable 31-7 lead.
After an American Fork touchdown, running back Tyler Kap did his part for Knights, scoring on a 58-yard run to extend the lead to 38-14.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Gunther got his first passing touchdown of the game, throwing it 39 yards to Tyler McPherson to make the score 45-14.
After a touchdown pass by Smith made it 45-21, The Knights converted a late field goal.
Head coach Mike Mower said he could not have been prouder of the way his team dominated the game from start to finish.
"I thought the kids played really well tonight. To have a crowd like this come out and to play such a quality opponent like American Fork, I'm really proud of the way our boys played."