Our defense did a good job of setting the tone and then offensively I was happy with the way we still competed and ran the ball and still threw it a little bit – Eric Kjar

DRAPER — The highly-anticipated Region 7 showdown between Corner Canyon and Timpview never really materialized like many thought it would Thursday night.

On a cold and wet night at Corner Canyon, the top-ranked team in 5A dominated from start to finish rolling past Timpview for the 44-7 victory to improve to 5-0 this season.

“Our defense did a good job of setting the tone and then offensively I was happy with the way we still competed and ran the ball and still threw it a little bit,” said Corner Canyon coach Eric Kjar.

Corner Canyon’s vaunted passing attack took a back seat to the running game during the driving rain as Zach Wilson carried the ball a career-high 27 times for 141 yards and a score and Tai Gonzales added 18 carries for 100 yards and two scores.

Wilson carried most of the load through the first three quarters, something Kjar said his senior doesn’t mind at all.

“Athletically he’s pretty special. His running game really made a difference for us,” said Kjar. “He’s always down for it, he’s really competitive.”

Despite the wet conditions, Wilson was solid when he dropped back to pass as well completing 12 of 20 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns.

As dominant as the offense was yet again, Corner Canyon’s defense continued to wreak havoc with opposing offenses limiting Timpview to just one touchdown and 252 yards of total offense.

That Charger defense put its stamp on the game early.

Two plays after Wilson hit Colton Lawson on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 1:52 left in the first quarter for the 7-0 lead, Dalton Hagen intercepted a Timpview pass and returned it 23 yards for the 14-0 lead.

Corner Canyon’s defense has scored in all five games this season with four interceptions returned for touchdowns and a safety.

Timpview’s offense had just six first downs in the first half and moved past Corner Canyon’s 35-yard line only once. That one promising drive moved Timpview to Corner Canyon’s 16, but a sack and a holding penalty backed the T-Birds up and instead of making it a 14-7 game it punted on fourth-and-34.

Corner Canyon tacked on a 22-yard field goal from Conner Ebeling on the last play of the half as it stretched its lead to 17-0.

Kjar’s team quickly put the game out of reach early in the third. The defense forced Timpview into a quick three and out, and the Chargers offense took advantage of the short field with Wilson hitting Lawson on a 37-yard strike for the 24-0 lead.

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Timpview fumbled on the first play of its next possession, and Corner Canyon quickly stretched the lead to 31-0 on a Gonzalez 1-yard plunge.

Timpview’s only score was on the ensuing drive as Hunter Erickson hauled in a 59-yard TD reception from Jake Biggs, trimming the lead to 31-7 with 7:15 left in the third quarter.

The game took a scary turn a few minutes later after a collision between Timpview defender Chandler Sorenson and Wilson. Sorensen took the brunt of the hit and after a 21-minute delay he was taken off on a stretcher and moved by ambulance to an area hospital for precautionary reasons. Sorensen was moving his arms and legs while being treated by medical personnel.

Wilson and Gonzales each added rushing TDs after the delay to put a stamp on an already convincing win.

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