Inside the Win: Persistent offense, senior kicker carry Palm Desert to 20-19 victory

THOUSAND PALMS, Calif. (KESQ) – Week 7 of high school football was headlined by the start of Desert Empire League play. Eight games filled the schedule, but one stood out above the rest.

Palm Desert went into the snake pit at Rancho Mirage, both teams looking to start league play on top. Rancho Mirage came into this game with the better record at 4-1, but Palm Desert at 3-2 proved to be a top opponent with it's star players.

This was a back-and-forth game up until the last seconds on the clock. Palm Desert was down 19-17 late in the game, but by the power of its offense and a great kicker they pulled through.

Senior kicker Reese Johnson was the star of the night, kicking the game winning field goal for 20-19.

"My kicker came out to me, said, 'Coach, if you get a chance to kick it, I wanted to get it into the middle of the field,'" Aztecs head coach Rudy Forti said. "Snap. Hold. Kick. All three good. We work on it every day, and you couldn't ask for anything better."

"I always feel pressure," Johnson said. "You know. it's pretty loud down here in the pit. But, I trust in my team to get me down there, and I wanted that shot. I wanted to provide this win for my team."

The offensive persistence that put Johnson in field goal position, also shined in this game. From an offensive line that came alive in the second half, to a strong duo in junior quarterback Joshua Perez to senior wide receiver Trey Boulton, the Aztecs were able to fend off the strong Rattlers defense.

"At first our offensive line wasn't really clicking, but they came out the second half and we stayed on their blocks, did what they needed to do," Forti said.

Inside the Win with Kendall Flynn airs every Saturday. Stay with News Channel 3 for continuing coverage on your local high school football teams.