PARKER, Colo. – Valor Christian leaned on a relentless ground game and a last-second defensive stand to survive Legend 31-30 on Saturday night at Echo Park, stopping a two-point conversion try as time expired to advance in the Class 5A state playoffs.

The No. 5 Eagles rushed 62 times for 342 yards and didn’t commit a turnover, overcoming a second-half surge from No. 4 Legend and senior quarterback DJ Bordeaux. Legend finished with 460 total yards, but three giveaways — two lost fumbles and an interception — proved costly in a game that swung repeatedly after halftime.

Valor struck first with an opening drive capped by senior Channing Fox’s 1-yard touchdown run. The Eagles forced a punt on Legend’s next possession, then traded punts to close the quarter with a 7-0 lead.

Legend threatened early in the second period, reaching the red zone before turning the ball over on downs at the Valor 8-yard line. Moments later, a dropped snap on a Valor punt led to a block, but the Titans fumbled the loose ball and sophomore Jaxon Wells recovered for the Eagles at their own 18. On the next play, senior Chase Hanosh bounced left and sprinted 63 yards for a touchdown, pushing Valor’s lead to 14-0.

Hanosh said he initially looked inside before finding daylight on the edge. “It was clogged inside,” Hanosh said. “I looked back and it was wide open. I took the hole … and there was no one there.”

Bordeaux helped Legend settle in before halftime. He hit Owen Armstrong for a long completion to set up an 8-yard scoring pass to Ryken Banks, cutting the deficit to 14-7. Valor answered in the final minute of the half with a 45-yard field goal from Luke Brust to take a 17-7 halftime lead.

The third quarter turned the game into a shootout. Legend opened the half with Evan Albrecht Reed’s 43-yard field goal, then tied the game when Bordeaux found Kellen Marchand for a 55-yard touchdown pass with about five minutes left in the quarter. Marchand finished with seven catches for 110 yards.

Valor reclaimed the lead on a long drive finished by sophomore quarterback Titus Huard’s 1-yard rushing touchdown. Huard, the son of former Washington and NFL quarterback Brock Huard, said the Eagles’ focus never wavered as the game tightened. “It was absolutely amazing,” Huard said. “But we’re still looking for two more.”

But Bordeaux — who produced 436 total yards — answered immediately, breaking up the middle for a 50-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the third to tie it 24-24.

Turnovers and short-field finishes defined the fourth. With Legend driving, junior Noah Pacheco intercepted Bordeaux and returned it to the Legend 40. Valor cashed in on the takeaway, with Fox powering in from a yard out for his second score and a 31-24 lead. Fox finished with 21 carries for 95 yards.

Legend had another chance to answer when Bordeaux ripped off a deep run into Valor territory, but he fumbled at the end of the play and the Eagles recovered with just under five minutes to go. Valor later thought it had put the game away on a long touchdown run, but a penalty brought it back, forcing a punt and giving Legend the ball at its own 32 with 37 seconds remaining.

Bordeaux moved the Titans with quarterback runs to the Valor 16. With five seconds left, he scrambled, broke multiple tackles and dove into the end zone as time expired, pulling Legend within one. Bordeaux carried 15 times for 232 yards and two rushing touchdowns to go with his 18-of-34 passing night for 204 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.

Coach Mike Sanford said he couldn’t believe the final scramble even as it unfolded. “You think it can’t happen,” Sanford said, “and then D.J. Bordeaux does what he does.”

Legend opted to go for two and the win. Bordeaux rolled right off play-action and flipped a pass toward Banks out of the backfield, but Valor cornerback Brandon Wright broke it up to seal the victory.

Sanford pointed to Valor’s dominance up front and ball security as the difference, noting the Eagles finished plus-3 in takeaways. “We had to win dirty,” he said.

Hanosh led Valor with 32 carries for 219 yards and a touchdown as the Eagles piled up 407 total yards despite completing just 9 of 17 passes for 65 yards.

Valor advances to face top-seeded Cherry Creek — the No. 1 team in Colorado and nationally ranked — in next week’s semifinal, while Legend’s season ends after a comeback that nearly stole a playoff classic.