Sesi Vailahi, No. 9 West Win Shootout Over No. 19 Kearns

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Sesi Vailahi led the No. 9 West Panthers to a road victory in a shootout with the No. 19 Kearns Cougars.

The Cougars hosted the Panthers on Friday, October 8.

West defeated Kearns, 49-37.

FINAL

West holds off the late comeback by Kearns.@WestHighSLC 49@Kearns_Football 37#KSLGameNight #GameNightLive pic.twitter.com/Uhn0Lm32mU

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 9, 2021

With 6:10 remaining in the opening quarter, Bronson Saena ran the ball for three yards and the first six points of the contest. Saena’s run gave West a 7-0 lead.

Later in the quarter, Kearn intercepted West quarterback Karson Lopati. The Cougars were unable to convert the turnover into points.

With 8:43 left in the second quarter, Lopati connected with Vailahi for an 18-yard score. The touchdown put West up 14-0.

The Panthers strike again.@WestHighSLC 14@Kearns_Football 0

8:43 | Q2#KSLGameNight #GameNightLive pic.twitter.com/1RhiHqCwJN

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 9, 2021

Lopati hit Vailahi for a 71-yard touchdown with 5:55 left in the second quarter to give West a 21-0 lead.

The Panthers are running away with this one after a 71-yard touchdown.@WestHighSLC 21@Kearns_Football 0

5:55 | Q2#GameNightLive #KSLGameNight pic.twitter.com/vs8mvNVMSR

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 9, 2021

A couple of minutes later, Kearns picked off West for the second time.

The Cougars got on the scoreboard when Iosefa Toia’ivao found Kody Barrett for an 11-yard touchdown pass with 21 seconds left in the first half.

The Panthers owned a 21-7 lead at halftime.

Vailahi scored his third touchdown of the game came on a 34-yard run that gave West a 28-7 advantage with 10:45 left in the third quarter.

The Panthers forced the Cougars to punt on their following possession. The fourth down play did not go as Kearns intended. The Cougars were unable to get off the initial punt before kicking the ball only 10 yards.

West punched in another touchdown with a goal line run three plays later. The score put the Panthers up 35-7 with 8:51 remaining in the third quarter.

Toia’ivao took the following drive into his own hands and ran the ball 33 yards for a touchdown. The big run gave Kearns its second score of the game and cut West’s lead to 35-14.

With 56 seconds left in the third quarter, the Cougars blocked a punt by the Panthers. The play led to a short field and a Benyon Glade field goal by Kearns to cut the scoreboard to 35-17.

The Cougars continued their comeback attempt with a touchdown to open the fourth quarter. Kearns cut West’s lead to 35-24 with 11:49 left in the game.

With 10:08 left in the game, the Panthers fumbled the ball deep in their own territory and the Cougars recovered to set up 1st & Goal.

10 seconds later, Kearns’ Naki Leha burst into the end zone to make it a 35-30 game.

West had a 35-7 lead. Now, Kearns is knocking on the door of a massive comeback.@WestHighSLC 35@Kearns_Football 30

9:58 | Q4#KSLGameNight #GameNightLive pic.twitter.com/ycZZUIwNtN

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) October 9, 2021

The Panthers marched down the field in under two minutes to halt the Kearns comeback. With 8:25 remaining in the fourth quarter, Lopati threw his third touchdown pass. West converted a two-point try and stretched its lead to 43-30.

16 seconds later, the Panthers picked off Toia’ivao.

Less than a minute later, West fumbled the ball deep in its own territory and Toia’ivao scooped up the ball before returning it for a Kearns touchdown. Toia’ivao’s score cut West’s lead to 43-37.

On West’s next drive, Vailahi sprinted down the sideline to extended the Panthers’ advantage. After a failed two-point conversion, the Panthers led 49-37 with 2:52 left on the clock.

The Cougars moved the ball into Panther territory before turning the ball over on downs with 1:16 remaining in the game.

West went into victory formation and closed out the game.

With the result, West improved to a record of 6-1 on the season and Kearns fell to 5-4.

West’s next game is against the Granger Lancers on Wednesday, October 13 at 7 p.m. (MDT).

Kearns’ next game is against Cyprus Pirates on Friday, October 15 at 7 p.m. (MDT).