The result was as stunning to the players as it was to outside observers. A year after losing to Kings Christian 55-0, the Anzar High football team stunned the California 8-man league powerhouse 26-20 last Friday in Lemoore.
“It made for a nice bus ride home,” said Hawks coach Frank Reyes, whose team didn’t arrive back in San Juan Bautista until 1:30 a.m. Saturday. “This was a big accomplishment, no doubt.”
Now in its fifth year as a program, this was the signature victory for an Anzar program that seems on the verge of a breakthrough. Kings Christian was 11-0 last season and entered the game ranked fifth in the state. Even though the Crusaders returned just four starters from a year ago, they’re still a formidable foe.
“They’re still a really strong program,” Reyes said.
Anzar took an 18-8 lead only to see Kings Christian storm back for three consecutive touchdowns and turn a 10-point deficit into a 20-18 lead. However, once the Hawks got back to what they do best—running the ball—they seized control. Marcos Galvan rushed for 169 yards on 14 carries and Angel Jimenez gained 71 yards on 12 carries to pace the team’s potent running game.
“We got up 18-8 and got a little bit fancy and out of character,” Reyes said. “Once they got the lead, we came back with our ground and pound attack. We basically possessed the ball for the entire fourth quarter.”
The Hawks controlled the line of scrimmage despite having three starting offensive linemen out with injuries. However, two freshmen—guards Caleb Lovell and Ben Minard—stepped in and played admirably, Reyes said. Lovell also had a standout game defensively at nose guard.
The good news is two of the team’s starting linemen are returning for Friday’s 7 p.m. home game against 8-man power Fresno Christian—“It’s amazing how many people want to play after a big win,” Reyes deadpanned—and the Hawks will have to be at their best if they expect to beat Fresno Christian, which is coming off a 38-8 win over Coast Union of Cambria.
A year ago, Fresno Christian destroyed Anzar, 46-2.
“Fresno Christian is a building block game for us,” Reyes said. “You come out of that game either surprised with what you did or needing to refocus and learn. Either way, it’s a high level of competition you want to test yourselves against.”
The Hawks are hoping this week’s game turns out to be a mirror of last week’s contest. Rod Amescua caught a touchdown pass while also allowing Anzar to win the battle of field position due to his effective punts, and Andrew Huaracha had his usual solid game, manning the defense at linebacker.
Huaracha relays in the defensive plays from Reyes to his teammates, and by the second quarter Reyes said Huaracha “knew what I wanted to do.” The senior fullback/linebacker also carried the ball several times in the fourth quarter, milking the clock in Anzar’s favor.
The Anzar players were pretty drained afterward.
“The start of the bus ride home started off pretty festive, as you could imagine,” Reyes said. “But a half hour in, they hit the wall. There were bodies (laying down) all over the bus.”
