AZ Angels 15U Elite Falls in Pylon Mecca Championship; AZ Dolphins & Angels 18U Both Fall in Round of 32 Heart-Breakers
- Mason Byers
- Feb 22
- 4 min read
Pylon Mecca is one of the biggest 7’s events of the year, and a lot was on the line for the Arizona teams in attendance.
However, none of the Arizona teams made it past round two of the HS division. AZ Angels 15U Elite made it to the championship, but ultimately lost in an overtime thriller.
Here are the games we covered during bracket play.
After a dominant pool play on day one, the AZ Dolphins would look to carry that momentum heading into bracket play.
The AZ Dolphins started their bracket play run on a high note.
Getting down the field quickly, Queen Creek 2028 quarterback Sawyer Hales found Liberty 2029 running back Joseph Montana multiple times to set the ball up near the goal line.
Capping off the drive was Hales' lofting a pass to Horizon 2027 wide receiver James Klopfenstein for the first score of the game.
The next drive, Hales would throw his second touchdown pass of the game to McClintock 2027 athlete Aidan Whitaker.
The Dolphins would keep on rolling.
Liberty 2028 defensive back Kadin Young would snag a crucial interception to keep Stars - Black (BC) from scoring.
They would then score two straight one-play touchdowns.
In almost identical plays, Hales would fire two deep bombs to Desert Edge 2028 wide receiver Hajj Brown to add to their lead.
On their final possesion the AZ Dolphins would have some fun to end the game.
Hales called plays while Whitaker played quarterback with some defensive players in at wide receiver.
Whitaker would proceed to throw a perfect pass to Centennial 2027 defensive back Devin Taylor for the final touchdown of the game.
AZ Dolphins would take a dominant win over Stars - Black (BC) 34-6 in round one.
AZ Angels took down Hitmen (MN) 19-12 in round one to move onto round two and take on the Knights (UT).
The Knights (UT) would start with the ball first and score a quick touchdown.
However, their PAT attempt was no good.
It wouldn’t take long for the Angels to get on the board, though.
Centennial 2028 quarterback Titus Hill would throw a 40-yard bomb to Liberty 2028 tight end Carter Eberhart for the TD.
The AZ Angels would convert the PAT and take a 7-6 lead over the Knights (UT).
Both offenses would proceed to stall as both teams turned the ball over on downs.
The Angels would get their rhythm back and extend their lead with less than five minutes to go in the game.
Hill connected with Liberty 2027 wide receiver Braxton Huynh on a quick pass for a touchdown.
This time, though, the Angels' PAT attempt was no good.
Methodically driving down the field, the Knights (UT) scored another touchdown.
Putting it all on the line, the Knights (UT) would go for a two-point conversion and the win.
At first, it seemed the win was going to the Angels, but a pass interference was called on them, giving the Knights (UT) one last shot at the conversion.
As time expired, the Knights (UT) would convert the two-point conversion and win over the AZ Angels 14-13 and move on in bracket play.
In their second round in bracket play, the AZ Dolphins would square off against Team Nacua (UT).
It seemed as though the game was going to get out of hand quickly.
On just the second play of the game, the Dolphins would find the end zone.
Hales would connect with Klopfenstein to put the Dolphins on the board first.
Team Nacua (UT) would be able to tie the game up, but the AZ Dolphins would start to blow the game wide open.
Hales would throw a 40-yard deep bomb to Sunrise Mountain 2027 wide receiver Tanner Austin.
On the next drive, the Dolphins would go back to the same play.
Again, Hales threw a one-play touchdown to Austin to give the Dolphins a 20-7 lead.
Suddenly, though, the momentum would be abruptly stopped.
The Dolphins would turn the ball over two times, and each time Team Nacua (UT) would take advantage.
Out of seemingly nowhere, Team Nacua (UT) scored 17 unanswered points and held a 24-20 lead over the Dolphins.
The game wasn’t over quite yet, though, as the AZ Dolphins kept showing fight.
Giving his offense a chance to win the game, Young came down with a crucial interception with 35 seconds left in the contest.
The Dolphins would end up getting the ball near the goalline after Klopfenstein caught multiple passes on the last drive to set his team up for a potential win.
Confusion struck, though, when a ref did not have the correct time left on his stopwatch compared to the other refs.
The Dolphins believed they had 10 seconds left in the game to get one more play off, but the ref gave them the incorrect time.
Time would not be on their side, and time expired before the Dolphins could get one last play in.
Ultimately, the AZ Dolphins would fall to Team Nacua (UT) 24-22.
15U Championship Highlights
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