Bear River grinds past Marysville in defensive battle

In a game defined by grit and defense, Bear River held off Marysville 14-6 on Friday night to earn a crucial Pioneer Valley League victory and remain in the mix of a heated playoff race. The Bruins and Indians were tied 6-6 in the fourth quarter before Bear River imposed its will with a powerful running game, marching down the field and draining the clock on a decisive touchdown drive. Senior Sean Kinney dived toward the goal line and lost control of the ball, but teammate Sam DeSart pounced on the loose ball in the end zone with 3:48 remaining for the go-ahead score. The Indians had to march 80 yards to tie the score and made it into Bruin territory with under a minute to go. But just as it did all night, the Bear River defense stepped up and sealed the victory by forcing a turnover on downs with 30 seconds to play. Bear River coach Jeremy Kerr praised his team's resilience on offense and resistance on defense, saying both were driving forces for the victory. "Marysville did a great job holding us in the red zone. We were inside the 20 four different times and we got two field goals out of that before we got the touchdown in the end," said Kerr. "Even getting the touchdown was kind of a challenge against this team. They were just so much bigger than us and we are strong, but we haven't seen that size yet." Bear River leaned heavily on the ground game with 147 yards on 39 carries. Brayden Estrada led the charge with 64 yards on 15 attempts, while Taven Duffey added 52 all-purpose yards and served as the team's top receiving threat with four catches for 41 yards. Quarterback Jayden Brock completed 6 of 13 passes for 49 yards. Marysville moved the ball through the air but struggled to finish drives. Junior quarterback Karter Ellyson completed 6 of 15 passes for 179 yards and a touchdown, connecting with Andrew Salguero, who had a monster night with 147 yards receiving on four catches. Despite outgaining Bear River through the air, the Indians were limited to 60 yards rushing and couldn't overcome the Bruins' stout front seven. While the defense held its own, Kerr said the play of the game may have come from Thomas Billingsley, who blocked an extra point to keep the score tied 6-6 and stole some momentum after a long Marysville touchdown. "He just had a clear pathway to block it and he got it," said Kerr. "It was really awesome to see that because it kind of changed momentum, especially after just giving up that frustrating play before." Bear River (5-3 overall, 2-2 PVL) will host the annual River Bowl against Colfax (2-5, 1-3) in a matchup Kerr says should go down to the wire. Said Kerr, "It's a rivalry game and we've had some of our worst teams compete against Colfax's best and vice versa. It's always close. We're going into it with that mentality that it's going to be a tough game this coming week and every game is a playoff game moving forward."