Mesa Ridge football rewrote history in its first game of the season. 

With a new quarterback in Koa Dietrich, the Grizzlies defeated Vista Ridge 28-12 on the road Friday night after previously being 0-5 all-time against the Wolves. 

Mesa Ridge led by as many as 20 points and held the home team scoreless for the entire second half. 

“It’s a big win to start the year,” Dietrich said. “It’s a rivalry game, high-passion. We came up the street and handled business. A little sloppy, things to lock up, but I’m proud of the guys. Just happy to play football.”

Before Friday, the last time the teams faced each other was in 2020, which was a 47-7 Vista Ridge home win. 

The Grizzlies came out swinging with three touchdowns in the first quarter, the third being a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown. 

Mesa Ridge senior quarterback Dietrich, a transfer from Mullen, ran in the first two touchdowns while Tishaun Kearney covered the field for the third. The third PAT kick was unsuccessful, putting the Grizzlies up 20-0. 

Vista Ridge had several costly turnovers throughout the night, including one on the opening play of the game, which led to Mesa Ridge’s first touchdown. 

With 11 seconds left in the first quarter, Vista Ridge junior Daniel McFarland dove over the goal line defense to put the Wolves on the board into the second quarter. 

The next quarter didn’t see any points until the final minute and 11 seconds when Vista Ridge quarterback Ashton Jones connected with Mark Zehel Junior for a touchdown. Its two-point attempt was no good, but the Grizzlies still held a 20-12 lead into the break. 

Not losing any momentum, Mesa Ridge’s Amari McBroom scored a touchdown on the opening drive of the second half to extend the Grizzlie’s lead to 28-12. 

The rest of the game remained scoreless despite another interception for the Grizzlies in the fourth quarter. The second half was also riddled with injuries including Jones, who was helped off the field with a leg injury with three minutes left.