By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Ghiorso, Bermudez lead CV to blowout victory over El Capitan
Hawks in hunt for postseason berth
sedwards.tiff
Scott Edwards has pushed all the right buttons during his first season as head coach of Central Valleys football program. The Hawks are closing in on their second straight playoff berth. - photo by DALE BUTLER/The Courier

Focused on the task at hand, Central Valley High School's varsity football team took care of business in dominant fashion while pummeling El Capitan's first-year program 61-20 Friday night at Merced College.

"We've controlled the clock the last three games," Hawks head coach Scott Edwards said. "We've scored 156 points. Offensively, we're going to need to continue to run the ball."

Central Valley, which improved to 5-3 on the year and 2-2 in the Western Athletic Conference, kept its postseason hopes alive.

The Gauchos dropped to 0-8 and 0-4.

"It's fun being where we're at," Edwards said. "We have a good shot at getting into the playoffs if we win one of our final two games. The bottom line is we want to win seven games. We're getting better. We have more potential in us still. We just got to keep at it."

Junior all-purpose player Moses Ghiorso had another standout game for the Hawks.

He rushed for 153 yards and four touchdowns (20, 36, 30 and 20) on just seven carries.

He caught two passes for 43 yards and one TD (38).

Ghiorso had one tackle, one interception and one pass deflection on defense.

Angelo Bermudez gained 100 yards and scored two TDs (1, 15) on eight carries.

He also returned a punt 50 yards for a score.

Alex Centeno completed 4 of 8 passes for 69 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

He ran for 49 yards and one TD (15) on four attempts.

Sophomore Jonathan Barragan had a 1-yard rushing touchdown.

Eight different players carried the ball at least once on offense.

Hawk Anthony Harrison racked up a team-high 16 tackles.
Josh Beleele and Imani Anitelea both registered nine tackles.

Marcos Dinkins passed for 246 yards with three touchdowns and one interception while filling in for injured El Capitan quarterback Chase Whitaker.

Isaiah Knott hauled in six passes for 124 yards and two TDs.

Elijah Reid added 84 yards and one score on seven receptions.

Central Valley limited Gauchos standout running back Joshua Stewart to 38 yards on 11 carries.

Central Valley put the game out of reach by building a commanding 41-7 lead in opening 24 minutes.

"It was a fun and exciting first half," Edwards said. "We jumped on them like nobody else has. We got a lot of people playing time in the second half. El Capitan's been competitive. That's a program that's going to be great in a short period of time."

Central Valley will play at Los Banos (6-2, 4-0) this Friday at 7 p.m.

They're a team that has gotten better over the season," Edwards said. "They're similar to us. People are still questioning what we're about after beating Livingston. Our three losses are to playoffs teams. We're still building. We got more room to grow. The challenge is for us to become a great football team."