SPRINGVILLE — Springville two-way linebacker Devyn Tate felt his Red Devil defense pushed back to the goal-line with Box Elder driving, down 28-13 with just under nine minutes remaining.

The Red Devils needed a stop, or risk getting swept out of the Class 4A state playoffs.

Tate looked over — and that's exactly what they got.

Scott Averett pulled down an interception in the end zone with 8:38 remaining, and Springville held Box Elder to 241 yards on the ground to hold on for a 28-20 win over the Bees on Saturday afternoon.

"We stuck to our assignments, stayed in our zones, and it worked out for us," Tate said. "There was a ton of pressure, but we just had to stay calm."

The Red Devils (10-0) held a 14-7 lead at halftime, keeping the game close with two teams that combined for just 23 first-half pass attempts.

In the second half, Springville continued to run, pound and rely on its defense for the win.

"Going into halftime, that's what we told them: We're used to being close at halftime, and that's what we expect," Springville coach Willy Child said. "We want to wear teams out in the second half. We did that. Box Elder is a lot like us; they pound the ball, too. It was a great game."

Adam Rodriguez ran for 92 yards and a touchdown, Averett added 58 yards and a score, and Tate had 40 yards and a touchdown on the ground to lead the Red Devils, who piled up 402 yards of offense in the win.

But it was one defensive stop that kept their season alive.

"That was huge," Child said. "It was probably the game-winner right there, getting the stop."

Averett opened the scoring with a 2-yard touchdown run on Springville's first drive of the game, a five-minute, 50-second drive that gave the Red Devils a 7-0 lead with 6:10 left in the first quarter.

But Box Elder (5-8) responded with a touchdown drive of its own, capped by Jarom Mecham's 9-yard scoring strike to Dylan Rodriguez with 1:04 left in the first.

From there, the Bees went to the ground. Bryant Tingey piled up 177 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, including an 82-yard run up the middle that reached the end zone with 10:14 remaining in the third quarter. After the two-point conversion failed, Springville responded with a six-minute drive that ended with quarterback Jantsen Thorpe's 1-yard sneak into the end zone to give the Red Devils a 21-13 lead going into the final period.

Tate got into the end zone on a 10-yard scamper with 11:09 to go up two scores, and Tingey added a 2-yard touchdown run with 3:46 left on the clock before Springville ran out the clock.

"A great high school football team; they are a heck of a team. They were physical, we were physical, and it just came down to who made the last stand. I thought our defense did great, our offense did what we want to do — move the ball, keep drives alive and run the clock."

Springville will host Murray in a 4A quarterfinal Friday.

4A Football Playoffs

Cuthbertson's big night leads Murray to win at Provo in 4A football playoffs

Gage Cuthbertson had two interceptions, including one returned 99 yards for a touchdown, and converted two field goals to help the Spartans stun host Provo 26-17 in the first round of the Class 4A state tournament Friday afternoon.

TIMPVIEW 54, SKYLINE 14 — At Timpview, the Thunderbirds scored 40 unanswered points after both teams were tied at 14-14 in the second quarter to pull away for the win. Timpview quarterback Kahi Neves ran for a pair of touchdowns, and Will Watanabe added a 90-yard punt return for a score to help the Thunderbirds pull away and set up next week's quarterfinal matchup with Bountiful.

HIGHLAND 41, SALEM HILLS 17 — At Highland, the Rams routed the Skyhawks to advance to face Corner Canyon in a state semifinal.

3A PLAYOFFS

JUAN DIEGO 31, DELTA 6 — At Juan Diego, Ryan Baker, Kaden Hayward and Alex Hoffman each scored a rushing touchdown to help the Soaring Eagle blitz the Rabbits with 17-straight second-half points en route to the win.

Juan Diego will face Juab in a 3A semifinal Nov. 6 at Southern Utah. North Sanpete will play Morgan at 4 p.m. Nov. 7.

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