Members of Central Valley’s football team poured their all into last week’s season-opening game against host Pitman.
The Hawks rallied twice from two-touchdown deficits before losing 28-27 to the Pride in heart-breaking fashion Friday evening at Turlock High School.
Pitman stuffed Central Valley’s potential, game-winning 2-point conversion run attempt late in the fourth quarter.
“I was really proud of the effort,” Hawks’ head coach Derrick Goblirsch said. “The guys could have thrown in the towel. They kept fighting. They showed a lot of character.”
Central Valley dropped to 0-1 on the season.
Pitman improved to 1-0 under first-year head coach Braden Plaa’s guidance.
“I think we can have success this year if we can continue to play like that,” Goblirsch said.
Central Valley didn’t perform its best against Pitman, but still made the contest interesting.
Elizjha Casteel’s 7-yard touchdown run cut the deficit to one point with 35.1 seconds left in regulation.
The Hawks opted to go for the win but Matthew Ontiveroz was tackled by Pride defenders Zachary Coelho, Jordan Riley and Payton Williams before he could cross the goal line on his 2-point conversion run attempt.
“Based on the momentum, we felt it was an easy decision,” Goblirsch said. “I liked the play call. We had success running the play over and over again. We had a lot of confidence in our offensive line to get the job done. They made a play. We didn’t execute as well as we would have liked.”
Central Valley recovered the onside kick on the ensuing kickoff, but Williams and Jesse Gutierrez were able to sack Hawk QB Junior Gomez as time ran out.
“We believed we could come back and win until the final second,” Goblirsch said. “Based on the score, we were pretty evenly-matched.”
Gomez completed 11 of 20 passes for 150 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions while splitting time at quarterback with Ontiveroz.
“They both played really well,” Goblirsch said. “I’m pleased with how they interacted on the sidelines. There was no selfishness. They both understood their roles. They motivated each other. They have different strengths. They’ll both continue to get reps.”
Sophomore Maxwell Gonzalez caught six passes for 90 yards and one touchdown.
Cristian Gudino hauled in two passes for 47 yards.
Erick Mendoza had 7 yards on two receptions.
Casteel’s lone reception resulted in a 6-yard gain.
The Hawks piled up 151 rushing yards on 36 carries.
Mendoza rushed for 46 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries.
Casteel gained 54 yards and scored one TD on 15 carries.
Sebastian Maldonado ran for 28 yards on five carries.
Ontiveroz added 18 yards on three carries.
Sophomore Josiah Armenta converted all three of his point-after kicks.
Gudino led Central Valley’s defensive with six tackles.
Jaycob Casias and Massimo Catalano both collected five tackles.
Terrance Wethington tallied four tackles.
Damian Jackson, Azaiah Lopez and Eazy Valdovinos all contributed three tackles.
Central Valley trailed 21-7 at halftime.
Mendoza accounted for the Hawks’ touchdown as he scored on a 4-yard run in the second quarter.
The Hawks outscored the Pride 20-7 after intermission.
Mendoza scored on a 2-yard run, Gomez tossed a 21-yard touchdown pass to Gonzalez and Casteel added a 7-yard rushing TD.
“Defensively, we made some adjustments and started playing better,” Goblirsch said. “Offensively, we played really well. We scored three touchdowns in the second half. We were rolling.”
Pitman improved its head-to-head record versus Central Valley to 3-2 since 2021.
The Hawks topped the Pride in 2024 (27-0) and 2021 (33-14).
Central Valley lost to Pitman this year, in 2023 (29-7) and in 2022 (26-7).
The Hawks will play host to the El Capitan Gauchos (1-0) this Friday.
The non-conference contest will be staged at Ceres High School.
Kickoff slated for 7 p.m.
“It will be another good challenge for us,” Goblirsch said. “They got some athletes.”
Turlock Journal reporter Joe Cortez contributed to this report.
