GameNight: DV crushes St. Mary's, 56-12

Eight different players put points on the board for Desert Vista, and the team's defense recovered four fumbles, to lead the Thunder to a dominant 56-12 win over visiting Phoenix St. Mary's Friday night.

St. Mary's (2-4) coughed up five fumbles in all and could never get on track as Desert Vista scored on its first four possessions to jump out to a 21-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

• Desert Vista football index
• See also: GameNight Breakdown: Thunder may roll from win
• Photo slideshow from the win 

Desert Vista offensive coordinator Don Rezac said it was the Thunder's gameplan to spread the ball around, but even he and head coach Dan Hinds didn't expect seven different players to score touchdowns.

"We want to diversify. We want lots of people touching the football," Rezac said.

Tailback B.J. Wilson scored two, while tight end Nick Valdez and running backs Marcus Washington, Austin Caswell, Anders Battle and Mike Spadafore scored once apiece.

Defensive lineman Chris Redding also added a touchdown after Thunder safety Cole Pembroke broke past the line on a blitz to crush St. Mary's quarterback Estefan Pedraza. Pedraza fumbled near the Knights' 12-yard line, where Redding scooped the ball up and ran in for the game's first score.

"It shows the kind athletes we have here," Caswell said.

The touchdowns by Redding, Valdez, Caswell and Spadafore were the first of the players' respective varsity careers. Kicker Alec Hsu hit his first career field goal from 23 yards out to round out Desert Vista's scoring.

"This is definitely the highlight of my season so far ... but I hope I get another one," said Spadafore, a scout-team contributor who seldom plays but had his teammates going wild on the sideline as he broke through the goalline on his third carry, a three-yard run.

Added Hinds: "We got everybody in, and that's great for the morale ... We have a lot of unselfish athletes."

Valdez caught four passes for 102 yards and a touchdown in place for top tight end Danny Mullarkey, also a standout defensive end, who sat out with a deep thigh bruise.

St. Mary's running back R.J. McGill stood out for St. Mary's despite the lopsided score. McGill ran for 102 yards on 12 carries -- including a 76-yard touchdown run in the third quarter -- and also caught six passes for 44 yards.