By Zach Alvira
Head of Content
The Arizona high school football Open Division state championship pinned two heavyweights against one another to cap off the 2024 season.
Liberty and Basha, the winners of the last two Open Division titles, dealt haymakers to one another. But in the end, it was Liberty running back Dominic Lombardo who delivered the final blow that allowed the Lions to capture their second straight title with a 35-17 win over the Bears.
"This one feels a little bit different than the last one," Liberty coach Colin Thomas said. "I'm just so proud of these guys. We lost like 90% of our offensive production from last year. A lot of guys had to step up. I'm just so proud of the players, the staff, everybody."
Liberty felt it was the hunted this season, even though a lopsided loss to Corona Centennial out of California had those outside the program questioning the Lions' ability to repeat as champions in a year where many teams were loaded with talent.
But the loss only fueled the Lions. Scares from the likes of Pinnacle and Salpointe Catholic, too. But when it was time to hit their stride they did just that. And they did so in dominating fashion.
Saturday night at Mountain America Stadium was no different. Liberty controlled the flow of the game and the ball, nearly doubling Basha's time of possession (31:46 to 16:11). The Lions also controlled the line of scrimmage, which allowed them to find success on the ground offensively and limit a potent Bears' rushing attack on defense.
"We had the ball a lot so we were kind of able to ware them out," Thomas said. "The kids flew to the ball. Our D-line didn't give up much to a team with that much size. Our defense was just really good."
It took time for Liberty to get going in the title game. The Lions seemed out of sorts offensively, with early turnovers that led to points for the Bears. It was uncharacteristic of a Liberty team that prides itself on playing sound football. That's what has allowed the Lions to continue their win streak of now 24 straight wins over Arizona opponents.
But nonetheless, even after a 15-yard pass from quarterback Hayden Fletcher to Brody Pilegaard, the Lions found themselves playing from behind after a Basha field goal in the first quarter and 19-yard connection from quarterback Brody Vehrs to wideout Kash Brock early in the second.
But Basha's lead didn't last long.
"We came out with that slow start, I guess you can call it nerves," Fletcher said. "Once we got the run game started and we could pass the ball effectively on them, it was smooth sailing from there."
Liberty found its groove. The defense, led by star linebacker Hudson Dunn, stuffed run lanes and applied pressure to Vehrs. The secondary, led by safety Zeth Theus, covered downfield. Basha was playing without star wideout Gio Richardson, who was hurt early on in the game and never returned.
The Bears found some success, but not nearly enough to keep up with Liberty.
The Lions scored twice more before the half on runs of 1 and 3 yards from Dominic Lombardo. Out of the break, Liberty continued to pound the rock. Esteban Demby-lamas scored a 6-yard rushing touchdown on the ground and Lombardo cashed in for a third time on a 12-yard run in the fourth that sealed the victory.
Lombardo finished with 126 yards overall on the night with the three scores, two marks that he was even surprised by.
"If you told my sophomore self this, I wouldn't believe you at all," Lombardo said. "I trusted my O-line, I trusted my brothers, I trusted Hayden Fletcher, I trusted my defense -- they got the job done for me."
Liberty's pass game, while not necessarily needed as much as it has been in past games, was still effective. Fletcher threw for 251 yards and a touchdown, completing 23 of his 32 pass attempts against a Basha secondary that gave up 393 yards through the air a week prior.
The Lions saw areas where they could exploit Basha and they took advantage. Meanwhile, the defense allowed little in the way of production by a normally high-powered Bears offense.
Vehrs was held to 153 yards through the air. He did, however, throw two touchdowns -- the second a 40-yarder to Roberts in the fourth. Roberts, the star sophomore back for Basha, was held to 23 yards on the ground. Joshua Gaines, his bruising running mate, was held to 10.
It was as complete of a performance as it could be for Liberty, something that the state of Arizona has become all too familiar with during the Lions' rise as a state power. Thomas, however, stopped short of referring to his program as a dynasty. Though that could come soon enough.
"I'm thinking about being proud of tonight," Thomas said. "We'll worry about next year when the time comes."
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