Twenty-one years ago, Ceres Unified School District’s then-Superintendent Walt Hanline talked about plans to build and open a new athletic stadium at Central Valley High School.

Sean McLeod and Zak Muller, members of the Hawks’ 2005 football team, expressed excitement over the idea.

Central Valley’s long-awaited dream of playing a home game on campus instead of at crosstown-rival Ceres High became a reality last week.

The Hawks opened the 2026 campaign with a 29-14 loss to the Pitman Pride in front of 3,000 fans Friday evening in Ceres.

“It was a special night,” Central Valley seventh-year head coach Derrick Goblirsch said. “We finally have our own home. The atmosphere was pretty electric. It was packed. It was really cool to see.”

“The environment was different,” Hawks’ junior quarterback Junior Gomez said. “The energy was so high. It was a great feeling to see the crowd out there supporting us.”

Central Valley dropped to 0-1 on the year, while Pitman improved to 1-0.

“It’s a long season,” Gomez said. “You have to have a short memory. You have to keep a positive attitude.”

The Hawks relied heavily on their rushing attack on offense versus the Pride.

Central Valley totaled 168 yards on 29 attempts.

Elizjha Casteel led the Hawks with 74 yards on eight carries.

Jeremiah Moreno carried the ball seven times for 34 yards and one touchdown.

Ivan Quezada ran for 48 yards on nine carries.

Gomez completed 3 of 6 passes for 23 yards and scored once on the ground.

Moreno’s lone catch resulted in a 13-yard gain.

Adrian De La Hoya had an 11-yard reception.

Pitman quarterback Brayden Esparza totaled 195 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions while completing 14 of 21 pass attempts.

Santiago Flores caught five passes for 95 yards and three touchdowns.

Jayden Machado grabbed five passes for 43 yards and one touchdown.

Jaiden Brown led the Pride rushing attack with 65 yards on 15 carries.

“The energy was great,” Goblirsch said. “Our kids’ heads were in the right place. We played really well early in the game. We battled. We had opportunities.”

Central Valley faced just a one-point deficit before Pitman extended its lead to 22-14 at the end of the opening half.

Esparza connected with Flores on a 45-yard scoring play.

“The momentum changed right before the end of the first half,” Goblirsch said. “Pitman scored on a long pass play as time expired.”

Neither team did much in the second half.

The Hawks lost two of five fumbles on their way to being outscored 7-0 by the Pride.

“Offensively, we kept shooting ourselves in the foot,” Goblirsch said. “We didn’t execute well. We couldn’t get anything going. Those things are fixable.”

Trailing 29-14 with five minutes to play, Central Valley had an offensive possession end with a turnover on downs inside Pitman’s 20-yard line.

“We had a chance to get within one score,” Goblirsch said. “We didn’t convert on a fourth down.”

“The little mistakes started adding up,” Gomez stated. “We gave them momentum each time we lost the ball on unforced fumbles.”

The Hawks limited the Pride to just one touchdown during the final 24 minutes.

“Defensively, we played really well,” Goblirsch said. “For us to be able to adjust and get some stops is a big confidence builder for us moving forward.”

Hurt by a lack of depth, Goblirsch talked about the importance of shoring up his offensive and defensive lines.

The Hawks dressed just eight linemen against the Pride.

“Pitman was big,” Goblirsch said. “They wore us down.”

“We’ll add a couple more linemen,” he added. “That will make a difference.”

Gomez and his Hawk teammates enjoyed the experience of running out of a giant inflatable tunnel and onto their home field for the first time.

Central Valley cheerleaders waved their pom-poms in the air while standing nearby in two lines.

“It’s a moment I’ll always remember,” Gomez said.

Goblirsch shook hands with former Central Valley players prior to kickoff.

Abraham Navarro, Elijah Jackson, Angel Vega, Sebastian Maldonado and Massimo Catalano attended the game.

“We wanted to put on a show for all the former players and community members that were there,” Goblirsch said. “I thought our kids played hard. The effort was there.”

Hundreds of community members attended Ceres Unified School District’s ribbon-cutting ceremony on Aug. 7 to commemorate the completion of the first phase of Central Valley High School’s new stadium, which cost $16.2 million.

“A milestone like this doesn’t happen by chance,” CUSD Superintendent Dr. Amy Peterman said. “It took the support of an entire community deeply committed to its young people to get to this moment.”

Central Valley will face El Capitan (0-1) on the road this Friday at 7 p.m.

The Gauchos edged the Hawks 26-21 last fall in Ceres.

“We’ll definitely try to clean up our mistakes,” Goblirsch said.

Turlock Journal staff writer Joe Cortez contributed to this report.