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HS football: Meet the 2015 All-Southern Arizona first team

  • Dec 19, 2015
  • Dec 19, 2015 Updated Dec 19, 2015

Here's a player-by-player look at area's best. 

Meet the All-Southern Arizona first team

Meet the All-Southern Arizona first team

A player-by-player look at the All-Southern Arizona first-team selections.

CLICK HERE to view the Star's second- and third-team picks along with the honorable mention selections.

CLICK HERE to view the Star's Fall Sports All-Stars, which honor Southern Arizona's top athletes in cross-country, girls volleyball, golf and swimming and diving.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Rhett Rodriguez 

Position: Quarterback 

School: Catalina Foothills  

Year in school: Junior 

Fast fact: RhettRod, the son of UA coach Rich Rodriguez, passed for 2,503 yards with a .665 completion percentage. He threw for 20 touchdowns with just two interceptions and rushed for 624 yards and 14 scores.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Dionte Flores 

Position: Running back 

School: Flowing Wells 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: The Star's player of the year rushed for 2,062 yards and 29 touchdowns to help Flowing Wells post a 9-2 record and qualify for the state playoffs for the first time since 2001.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Freddy McCarty 

Position: Running back 

School: Nogales 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: McCarty gained 1,731 yards and scored 16 touchdowns on 187 carries to pace Nogales to its first winning season since 2012. He also caught three passes for 51 yards and a score.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: DeAndre Williams 

Position: Running back 

School: Tucson High 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: The dynamic two-way starter combined for more than 2,000 yards rushing and pulled in four interceptions. He had 199 carries for 1,509 yards and 19 touchdowns, and caught 25 passes for 494 yards and three scores.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Isaiah Lovett 

Position: Wide receiver 

School: Mountain View 

Year in school: Junior 

Fast fact: The 6-foot-4-inch Lovett could be Southern Arizona's player of the year in 2016 after he caught 38 passes for 852 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Spencer Schuller 

Position: Wide receiver 

School: Bisbee 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Schuller broke the 2A single-season and career records this season as he caught 61 passes for 1,534 yards and 26 touchdowns. The senior also intercepted five passes and and averaged 42.6 yards a punt.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Ben Walker 

Position: Tight end 

School: Pusch Ridge Christian 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Walker pulled in the biggest catch of the year in the state quarterfinals and snagged a game-tying touchdown pass in the Division IV state championship game to help lead Pusch Ridge to its first title. He finished the season with 26 catches for 529 yards and six touchdowns.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Hunter Alderson 

Position: Offensive line

School: Ironwood Ridge 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: The 6-foot-4-inch 265-pound Alderson helped pave way for 2,580 rushing yards as I-Ridge was Tucson's only team to reach the Division II quarterfinals.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Dylan Eickmeyer 

Position: Offensive line 

School: Salpointe Catholic 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Eikmeyer, a 6-foot-3-inch, 275-pound team captain, verbally committed to play fro Montana before the season. He also had offers from Adams State and the University of Mary.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Rafael Encinas 

Position: Offensive line  

School: Sunnyside 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: The 6-foot, 245-pound Encinas provided stellar blocking to help senior quarterback Nick O'Hagin pass for 1,906 yards and rush for a team-high 807 yards and 10 touchdowns.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Andrew Palomares 

Position: Offensive line 

School: Salpointe Catholic 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Palomares has a scholarship offer from Adams State and has drawn interest from South Dakota State with his 6-foot-3-inch, 280-pound frame.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: David Watson 

Position: Offensive line 

School: Amphitheater 

Year in school: Sophomore 

Fast fact: The Panthers may have gone winless this fall but they have one of Southern Arizona's top college prospects in the 6-foot-6-inch, 290-pound Watson. He'll be eligible to receive scholarship offers next summer.  

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Harrison Beemiller 

Position: Athlete 

School: Ironwood Ridge 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Beemiller played just about every position for the Nighthawks and rushed for a team-high 866 yards and 17 touchdowns. He caught 15 passes for 277 yards and two scores and completed 35 of 66 passes for 524 yards and seven touchdowns. The dynamic senior also shined on defense.

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense

All-Southern Arizona first-team offense 

Name: Jacob Meeker-Hackett 

Position: Kicker 

School: Cienega 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Meeker-Hackett converted 7 of 8 field goal attempts, hitting game-winners on the road against Tucson High and Salpointe Catholic. The senior was also a perfect 25 of 25 on extra points.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Bryce Fontana 

Position: Defensive line 

School: Cienega 

Year in school: Junior 

Fast fact: In eight games, the 6-foot, 270-pound Fontana had 4.0 sacks and 3.0 tackles for a loss. He also averaged 4.3 tackles per game.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Justin Holt 

Position: Defensive line 

School: Salpointe Catholic 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Holt, who is verbally committed to play for the Arizona Wildcats, led the Lancers with 4.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for a loss. The 6-foot-3-inch, 300-pound senior was second on the team with 7.9 tackles per game.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Jackson Jesionowski

Position: Defensive line 

School: Sabino 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: The 6-foot-5-inch, 185-pound defensive end helped the Sabercats limit opponents to 111 points this season. He led the team in sacks and holds scholarship offers from Army, Navy and Colorado School of Mines.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Chase Laurita 

Position: Defensive line 

School: Ironwood Ridge 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Laurita verbally committed to NAU earlier this month, after a dominant senior season with the Nighthawks. The 6-foot-4-inch, 245-pound two-way player had 14 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks and averaged 6.1 tackles per game.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Coy Colgate 

Position: Linebacker 

School: Nogales 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Colgate doubled as a fullback and led Nogales' defense with 14.0 tackles per game. He also had 23.0 tackles for a loss and 8.0 sacks.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Ruben Figueroa 

Position: Linebacker 

School: Sunnyside 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: For the second year in a row, Figueroa led the Blue Devils in tackles per game, with 10.7. He also had 9.0 sacks, 8.0 tackles for a loss and one interception.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Jake Ksiazek 

Position: Linebacker 

School: Salpointe Catholic 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Ksiazek was one of the top linebackers in the state as he averaged 12.2 tackles per game and was voted the Division II, Section I defensive player of the year. The 6-foot-2-inch, 225 pound senior has scholarship offers from Air Force, Army, Holy Cross, Navy, South Dakota State, UC-Davis and UNLV.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: James Raica 

Position: Linebacker 

School: Pusch Ridge Christian 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: On top of being Pusch Ridge's leading rusher, Raica averaged 10.1 tackles per game and came up with big plays late to help Pusch Ridge win in the state semifinals and the championship game. He had 12.0 tackles for a loss, 5.0 sacks, two interceptions, one force fumble and a fumble recovery.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Bryan Beckon 

Position: Defensive back 

School: Catalina Foothills 

Year in school: Junior 

Fast fact: Beckon was one of Tucson's elite wide receivers, but his skills as a defensive back had him voted as the Division III, Section VI, defensive player of the year. The 6-foot, 160-pound junior had 33 pass breakups and two interceptions, once of which he returned for a touchdown.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Tyson Coleman 

Position: Defensive back 

School: Benson 

Year in school: Junior 

Fast fact: Coleman anchored Benson's defensive backfield with seven interceptions in addition to catching 20 passes for 463 yards and nine touchdowns. The Bobcats won 13 straight games this fall before losing in the Division V state championship.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Tommy Lawrence 

Position: Defensive back 

School: Mountain View 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Lawrence intercepted six passes and returned one of those 102 yards for a touchdown. The 6-foot-2-inch, 195-pound senior also averaged 4.8 tackles per game and had 3.5 tackles for a loss.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Jared McKemy 

Position: Defensive back 

School: Ironwood Ridge 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: McKemy intercepted three passes, recovered two fumbles and forced another for the Nighthawks. He also caught 20 passes for 350 yards and five touchdowns.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Justin Pledger 

Position: Utility 

School: Pueblo 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: The dynamic Pledger showcased his abilities as a do-it-all utility player when he returned both a punt and an interception for touchdowns on top of passing for three scores in a win against Catalina.

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense

All-Southern Arizona first-team defense  

Name: Gabriel Hernandez 

Position: Punter 

School: Sahuarita 

Year in school: Senior 

Fast fact: Hernandez averaged 45.3 yards per punt — the third-best mark in the state — on 18 attempts, with a long of 57 yards. He also shined as a placekicker, drilling a 52-yard field goal in a win against Walden Grove.

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