The Mesa Jackrabbits played tough defense and came up with the big plays they needed on offense to defeat Brophy 13-3 Friday night at Phoenix College, eliminating the Broncos from the state playoffs.

“If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can move mountains, and today we moved a mountain,” said Mesa coach Kelley Moore.

The Mesa defense held Brophy running back Max Leonesio to just 49 yards, forcing sophomore quarterback Chase Knox to pick up the slack. Knox went 11-for-25 for 125 yards.

Alex Garoutte’s 25-yard field goal in the first quarter gave Brophy a 3-0 lead, but Mesa’s offense came up big when necessary. Kyler Fackrell caught a 46 yard touchdown pass with 1:44 remaining in the first half to give Mesa a 7-3 lead. With quarterback Dallin Parker rolling out of the pocket, Fackrell found a spot behind the secondary and waited for the throw. Parker hit his wide open receiver for a long touchdown.

Parker went 9-for-12 for 113 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Asure McMillan ran in an 8 yard touchdown with 8:20 left in the fourth quarter to give Mesa a 13-3 lead. Brophy’s attempts at a comeback never really got off the ground.

Brophy’s last ditch effort at a comeback started with 2:09 remaining in the game on a 51-yard pass from Knox to Josh Dennard, who tripped after catching the pass, denying him what looked like a touchdown.

Know then threw three straight incompletions, and Garoutte’s 55 yard attempt was no good.

Garoutte made just one of three field-goal attempts but came up big on defense, picking off Parker and getting a sack.

Kenny Wantland and John Shea, co-defensive coordinators for the Jackrabbits, were given high praises by Moore for their defense’s strong effort

“They won the game,” he said.