Evergreen junior Seth Ausman (28) makes a move after a catch on Conifer senior Kailib Geer (25) on Saturday afternoon during the annual Mountain Bowl at Conifer High School. The No. 5 Cougars took a 44-6 victory against the No. 9 Lobos. (Dennis Pleuss)
CONIFER — There was a lot on the line Saturday afternoon as Evergreen and Conifer battled on the football field in the annual Mountain Bowl.
Evergreen, undefeated and No. 5 in this week’s CHSAANow.com Class 3A football rankings, earned bragging rights along with taking sole possession of first place in the 3A Metro North League with a dominating 44-6 victory over No. 9 Conifer on the Lobos’ home field.
“It means everything,” Evergreen junior quarterback Dylan Reifeis said after the Cougars spoiled the Lobos’ homecoming game. “There was a lot riding on this game.”
Evergreen junior running back James Hardy goes head over heels at the conclusion of a 52-yard run in the second quarter Saturday at Conifer High School. Hardy had 132 yards rushing in the Cougars’ 44-6 win. (Dennis Pleuss)
Reifeis had an impressive game through the air, completing 14-of-23 passes for 243 yards and four touchdowns. The junior had a pair of touchdown passes to junior Seth Ausman in the first half and another pair to senior Marcus Cassin.
The Cougars (7-0, 2-0 in league) scored 44 unanswered points after Conifer took an early 6-0 lead. The Lobos converted on an Evergreen turnover with a 17-yard touchdown run by senior Vaughn Brasseaux with 9:28 left in the first quarter. However, after that it was all Evergreen.
“Conifer came out swinging right away and that’s why they scored quickly,” Evergreen coach Rob Molholm said. “We had to get refocused and we did.”
Evergreen took the lead with a 47-yard touchdown pass from Reifeis to Ausman in the final minute of the first quarter. Ausman didn’t have a defender near him as Reifeis floated a pass downfield.
“I don’t know what happened,” said Ausman, who had six catches for 157 yards and the two scores. “I went deep and Conifer’s defensive backs didn’t even notice. It was wide open and my quarterback (Reifeis) put it right there. It was a great throw.”
The Cougars’ defense got into the scoring act tackling Conifer running back Kailib Geer in the end zone for a safety early in the second quarter. Ausman caught his second touchdown of the game three plays later to put the Cougars up 16-6.
Evergreen scored touchdowns on its final two possession of the first half to grab a commanding 30-6 lead. Senior Tanner Cassin had a 7-yard touchdown run and Reifeis hooked up with Marcus Cassin for a 4-yard touchdown with 19 seconds left in the half.
“We knew we had to play our ‘A’ game to beat (Conifer) and I think we really did,” Reifeis said.
Evergreen junior Seth Ausman flips the ball to the referee after a 47-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter Saturday. Ausman had 157 yards receiving and a pair of touchdowns. (Dennis Pleuss)
Evergreen flipped back-and-forth from its spread shotgun offense and robust running attack. The Cougars piled up nearly 200 yards on the ground, led by junior James Hardy’s 132 yards on 10 carries.
“That’s what we are looking for — 50/50 run and pass,” Ausman said of Evergreen’s balanced offensive attack. “We’d like to be able to do everything against teams.”
The victory in the Mountain Bowl was the fifth straight for Evergreen. A first is the annual game for the Cougars, according to Molholm.
“It means a ton because we’ve never won five straight (against Conifer),” Molholm said. “That’s a good team with great coach in (Larry) Fitzmaurice over there.”
Conifer (5-2, 1-1) has a quick turnaround with a 6 p.m. Thursday game at Trailblazer Stadium in Lakewood against Centaurus (3-4, 1-1) next week.
Evergreen is the lone undefeated team in the Metro North conference with three league games remaining.
“At 7-0 we control our own destiny,” Ausman said. “We’ve got Arvada, Centaurus and D’Evelyn. We can’t look down on any of those teams. I’ve got to work hard and then go to the playoffs.”
Evergreen also heads to Trailblazer for its next contest. The Cougars face winless Arvada at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 18.
Evergreen junior quarterback Dylan Reifeis (4) can’t escape the tackle of Conifer senior Wyatt Wiklund (81). Reifeis has much more success throwing the football. The junior threw for 243 yards and four touchdowns in Evergreen’s 44-6 victory. (Dennis Pleuss)
Conifer senior Vaughn Brasseaux, far right, gets some blocking help from Richie Benson (80) as Evergreen defenders Nash Norton (22) and Brian Reed (35) chase Brasseaux down during the first half of the Mountain Bowl on Saturday at Conifer High School. (Dennis Pleuss)