PEORIA, Arizona, Aug. 28 — Arizona’s defending AIA Open Division champion Liberty Lions of Peoria lead the Mountain View [Mesa, AZ] Toros, 23-0, at the half.
The Thursday night season opener will pit the No. 24 Lions against a Mountain View team they beat 49-20 during the 2024 regular season. Mountain View advanced to the state championship game of the AIA’s Class 6A where the Toros lost to the Centennial [Peoria, AZ] Coyotes.
Liberty enters the game making its debut in The Sporting News High School Football Top 25 with a big interstate matchup next week at the No. 21 Corner Canyon [Draper, UT] Chargers. Corner Canyon is already 2-0 on the young season while Liberty has yet to take the field.
If Liberty and Corner Canyon both make it through this weekend unscathed, then the winner of next week’s game will add a major bullet point to its resume as it looks to make a run at the Top 10 by season’s end.
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STREAM: Watch No. 24 Liberty [Peoria, AZ] vs. Mountain View [Mesa, AZ]
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Refresh for updates
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|| THIRD QUARTER ||
Liberty scores quickly to start the third quarter, and this one is about over.
3rd Qtr — LIBERTY 30, MOUNTAIN VIEW 0
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|| SECOND QUARTER ||
Liberty adds another touchdown before the break, and Mountain View is facing a big deficit heading into the second half.
Halftime — LIBERTY 23, MOUNTAIN VIEW 0
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Jayden Sanchez adds another score on the ground for the Lions as they start to pull away.
2nd Qtr — LIBERTY 16, MOUNTAIN VIEW 0
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Liberty’s offense finally gets a score of its own.
2nd Qtr — LIBERTY 9, MOUNTAIN VIEW 0
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We’re under way in the second quarter.
|| FIRST QUARTER ||
The first quarter ends in a defensive struggle so far.
End of 1st Qtr — LIBERTY 2, MOUNTAIN VIEW 0
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Liberty’s first score of the 2025 season is a safety. They lead Mountain View early.
1st Qtr — LIBERTY 2, MOUNTAIN VIEW 0
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TOP 25 AND THE GAME OF THE WEEK …
While you’re getting ready for tonight’s big game, get yourself up to speed on the preseason edition of The Sporting News High School Football Top 25.
Then check out Last week’s Top 25 Roundup to see how the rest of our Top 25 fared in National Week 2.
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OUR PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA TEAMS …
Finally, don’t miss out on The Sporting News Preseason All-American Teams that just debuted today!
The Sporting News High School Preseason All-American Offense 2025
The Sporting News High School Preseason All-American Defense 2025
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We’ll check back in here in a while with a look at some more storylines and an update on the weather.
MORE HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL HEADLINES …
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Here are the top 20 quarterbacks to watch in South Texas for ’25 season