Different week, same result.
And for the third time in four years, the Fallon football team advanced to the Division I-A state semifinals.
The Greenwave rolled past visiting Lowry, 34-6, on the legs on senior Nathan Heck and will battle Desert Pines on Saturday in Fallon. Desert Pines slipped past defending state champ Faith Lutheran, 34-27, on Friday in Las Vegas.
Elko visits Moapa Valley in the other semifinal on Saturday.
"We started off with two pretty rough plays," Lowry coach Tim Billingsley said. "We spotted them 14 points in the first half."
Heck, meanwhile, was a one-man scoring machine in the first quarter. After stopping the Buckaroos on a fake punt, Heck capped a six-play, 55-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.
The stellar senior was just getting started.
Lowry drove 46 yards on its next possession, but quarterback Christian Gray made a costly mistake that shifted momentum to Fallon.
On second-and-goal at the Wave's 6-yard line, Gray was pressured by linebacker Johnny Mayo and rolled to his right. His pass, though, was picked off by Heck at the goal line and he somehow tip-toed his way down the sideline for a 100-yard return for a TD.
Fallon never looked back.
"He was trying to make a play and can't fault him for that," Billingsley said. "We knew we were going to have to throw a little bit more. They are hard to block. They play good defense."
Charles Fulks added a 3-yard TD run early in the second quarter to put the Wave up 20-0 after an interception by Fallon's Aaron Bitter.
On Fallon's second drive of the third quarter, it was all Heck minus a nifty 12-yard scramble by Fallon quarterback Joe Pyle to pick up a crucial first down.
Heck, though, tallied nine carries for 68 yards including a 4-yard score to all but seal the win. Fulks added his second TD in the fourth quarter.
Heck's lone blemish was a controversial fumble in the fourth quarter after a 26-yard run. It appeared he was down and the ball popped out after he hit the ground, but the officials ruled a fumble and Lowry took over at its own 5.
"We just have to advance at this point and our kids played good enough to do that," Fallon coach Brooke Hill said.
Lowry, meanwhile, scored on the final play of the game when Gray hit Kyle Tarr for a 62-yard TD pass. Gray finished the game with 125 yards, one TD and two interceptions.
The Buckaroos' mistakes were too great to overcome. Their second drive of the game was fluid and highlighted by a 35-yard completion from Gray to Thomas Schwartz.
But then came the pick-six.
Lowry's opening drive in the third quarter used the Wildcat formation with running back Beau Billingsley as the "quarterback." Starting on their own 31, the Buckaroos moved all the way to Fallon's 7, but an errant snap went through Billingsley's legs setting up fourth-and-20. Gray's ensuing pass fell harmlessly out of bounds and gave the Wave the ball.
Lowry also had a trio of three-and-out series, giving Fallon the ball.
"We were pretty aggressive defensively," Hill said. "We had some stops early and then Nate's 100-yard interception return. They have a chance to tie it up 7-7 and then we are up 14-0."
Fallon's defense, meanwhile, shut down Lowry's two-headed rushing attack of Billingsley and Donovan Brumm. The two backs combined for 88 yards on 28 carries, while the Buckaroos only ran for 104 yards as a team.
Fallon, meanwhile, ran for 263 yards including 66 yards from Fulks and another 43 from Pyle. Pyle also completed 8-of-15 passes for 112 yards.
Fallon 34, Lowry 6
Lowry 0 0 0 6 - 6
Fallon 14 6 8 6 - 34
First quarter
F - Nathan Heck 4 run (Riley Williams kick), 7:47
F - Heck 100 interception return (Williams kick), 3:01
Second quarter
F -Charles Fulks 3 run (kick failed), 11:22
Third quarter
F - Heck 4 run (pass good), 0:37
Fourth quarter
F - Fulks 12 run (kick failed), 8:37
L - Kyle Tarr 62 pass from Christian Gray, 0:00
Stats
Rushing - Fallon: Nathan Heck 19-154, Charles Fulks 10-66, Joe Pyle 6-43, Jake Ernst 1-0. Lowry: Beau Billingsley 19-70, Donovan Brumm 9-18, Thomas Swartz 6-23, Christian Gray 5-1, Omar Guerrero 1-(minus 5), Sterling Dennis 1 (minus 3).
Passing - Fallon: Pyle 8-15-112-0-0. Lowry: Gray 6-11-125-1-2. Dennis 0-1-0-0.
Receiving - Fallon: Dylan Jabines 4-51, Connor Richardson 2-33, Cade Vercellotti 1-25, Tim Rosario 1-3. Lowry: Kyle Tarr 1-62, Swartz 1-35, Jared Taylor 1-14, Billingsley 1-9, Dennis 1-5, Brumm 1-0
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