Highland's defense took advantage of the woeful Orem offense as the Rams coasted to a 34-0 victory in the opening round of the Class 4A playoffs at

Highland on Friday evening.

"Our defense held tough," said Rams head coach Brody Benson. "That really showed a lot of class."

Despite turning the ball over three times in the first half, the Rams managed to keep the Tigers well out of the end zone. Orem's only scoring opportunities came in the form of missed Curtis Killpack field goals. His attempts, which came at distances of 32 and 37 yards, both missed wide left.

"We hadn't had a problem with turnovers all year, so it was new for us," Benson said. He added the defense shut the Tigers down when it had to and he was proud of that. "Our defense has been doing that all year."

Highland was led by quarterback Mason Keller, who ran for 70 yards on 12 carries. His rushing totals complimented his eight-for-16 passing performance that accounted for 112 yards.

Toi Taufa added 64 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries for the Rams.

Orem's numbers weren't quite as impressive. The Tigers were held to just 30 passing yards as quarterback Harrison Gray threw six completions on 18 attempts. Keenan Karrati rushed for 34 yards on 11 carries.

Taufa opened the scoring for the night as his one-yard touchdown on fourth-and-goal from the 1 gave Highland a 7-0 lead. The run capped an 85-yard, 11-play drive with 5:41 to play in the first quarter.

The Rams made it 14-0 when Sione Fainu scampered 68 yards for a touchdown with 6:42 to play in the second. Highland needed only four plays to travel 80 yards in the scoring drive.