Reece Judson is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Arcadia High School for AZPreps365.com

The game started with heavy rainfall and thunderstorm conditions Saturday morning.

For Arcadia Titans field goal kicker Caleb Young, the setting, it seemed, was ideal.

The senior converted a 33-yarder in the second quarter and booted a 42-yarder with just 52 seconds left in the first half to give Arcadia a 6-0 halftime lead. When the rain stopped, senior quarterback Zach Smith’s offense and Arcadia’s defense then went to work under somewhat clear skies.

Arcadia eventually left its home turf feeling sunny after shutting out American Leadership Academy-West Foothills 20-0 to remain undefeated.

“These kids didn't quit, and in the second half we came out and put some drives together, the weather cleared up a little bit and we were able to throw more,” Titans head coach B.J. Pasquel said. “We ended the game on a nine minute drive.”

Because of Friday’s showers, the game was moved to Saturday morning.

When the rain finally stopped, the Titans wasted no time scoring in the second half, as Smith connected with senior receiver Ian Slater for a 37-yard score.

With 8:27 remaining in the third quarter and Arcadia leading 13-0, the Guardians fumbled the ball during their first second half drive. Senior strong safety Jaxon Krohn recovered the ball near the 10-yard line, giving the Titans a good scoring opportunity.

Ultimately, Smith found junior wide receiver Konnor Kammes in the end zone for a 8-yard touchdown catch to go ahead 20-0. On the ground, senior Ryan Jimenez helped control the clock while rushing 26 times for 107 yards for Arcadia.

“It’s been a rainy game,” Krohn said. “The whole game everybody's wet. Everybody's tired. Their running back coughed up the ball and I made sure I got on that ball. It was a huge momentum swing for us and we got to score again and it really sealed the game for us.”

In the fourth quarter, Arcadia sophomore defensive back Jordan Barnes capitalized on ALA-West Foothills’ momentum loss.

The Guardians, who were at the 22-yard line with 8:30 remaining in the fourth quarter, attempted a deep touchdown pass in the end zone.

But Barnes quickly shut down the pass play.

With just under eight minutes left in the fourth, the Guardians attempted another deep pass in the end zone. But Barnes once again broke up the pass, forcing a turnover on downs with 7:54 to go in the fourth.

“We knew that they were going to try and pass the ball,” Barnes said. “I was just trying to stay deep in the zone, drop back and just try to play through the hands. I wanted to make sure they didn’t get any big plays.”

With the hard-fought win, the Titans (5-0) now look ahead to next Friday night with hopes to continue their undefeated record against another undefeated team, Combs. Combs shutout its first five opponents.

“It’s a big win,” Pasquel said. “We got another big one next Friday, and that's a good football team. I'm sure they're going to be a playoff team, and that's our goal as well.”