Nevada Appeal: Carson football escapes Canyon Springs with win

For the second season in a row, Carson High School football took down Canyon Springs.

Friday night, following a 6 p.m. start, the Senators bested the Pioneers, 12-7.

The Senators were nearly able to ice the contest after forcing a turnover on downs, but a fumble gave the Pioneers some late life with 3:48 to go.

Canyon Springs started in Carson territory and marched down the field to score its first points of the game, making it 12-7 Carson, with 1:55 remaining in regulation.

The Senators jumped on the ensuing onside kick, grabbed one final first down and took a couple kneel downs in victory formation to finish off the clock.

“All the credit goes to the kids. They work extremely hard and so does my coaching staff,” said Steven Nelms on his first career win as a head coach. “It’s a great win and its super exciting for me, but all the credit goes to those kids and my coaching staff.”



GETTING STARTED

Carson got its first points of the game late in the first half after a pair of touchdowns were called back early by penalties.

“It threw off our game plan not being able to motion and shift,” said Nelms. “Adversity struck us a lot. There were a lot of things we had no control over and the kids kept a great, positive attitude.”

Down in the red zone in the second quarter, quarterback Nicholas Heald rolled out of the pocket to find Ethan Linehan from about six yards out for a passing touchdown.

After a missed extra point, Carson took a 6-0 lead into the break.

“It was an exceptional catch in the end zone,” said Nelms.

The Senators’ lead nearly evaporated on a last-second shot play before the intermission in the form of a halfback pass.

A turnover ended up in possession of the Pioneers, who nearly ran it back for a score, but a chase-down tackle from Carson’s Justin Gonzalez and Johnathan Alvarado saved the first half shutout.

“They made a full-out effort play to make sure they (Canyon Springs) don’t score before the half. That was a key play for us and it’s exciting for our kids to see our effort matters on every play,” said Nelms. “Looking back that was a key play for us.”

In the second half, Alvarado powered in for a rushing touchdown to put the Senators on top, 12-0, with 7:40 to play in the fourth quarter.

On defense, Cruz Gonzales grabbed an interception for Carson while Rudy Sheeketski scooped up a fumble recovery. Heald was credited with the forced fumble.

UP NEXT: Carson (1-1) will be a little closer to home next Friday, but will still be on the road, taking on Spanish Springs (2-0) at 7 p.m.