Saturday night at the Long Beach City College Veterans Stadium, the West High Warriors competed against Palos Verdes Sea Kings for the title of CIF Champions. As the game began, both teams were ready to fight for the win.
With the game underway and the crowd pumped up, Palos Verdes scored in the bottom of the first quarter, starting the game off with a score of 7-0. In response to the Sea Kings sudden score, wide receiver Craig Knaus (11) scored a touchdown for the Warriors, tying the game 14-14. As both teams continued their fight, the Sea Kings scored in the in the bottom of the first half, regaining their lead with a score of 13-7. In the last few minutes of the first half, Palos Verdes scored again against the Warrior’s defense, widening the score to 19-7.
With the first half over and the second half starting up, the Sea Kings scored in the bottom of the third quarter, increasing the score to 26-7. In the beginning of the fourth quarter, Palos Verdes kicked a field goal, once again changing the score to 29-7. Unwilling to let them score again, running back Barry Thomas (12) scored in the bottom of the fourth quarter, finally changing their score to 29-14. As the final touchdown of the CIF Championship game, the Sea Kings scored, ending the game with a score of 36-14.
As the Warriors reminisce on their unfortunate loss, linebacker Trevor Williams (11) said, “During our pre-game warm up, we felt prepared and we didn’t want to wait any longer to play. During the first half, we came out excited and what lost the game for us was our hope to win.” In agreement, wide receiver Evan Nunez (11) said, “We played our hearts out and ended up beating ourselves. Our small mistakes added up but we still played every down like it was our last. I would send a congrats to PV, but they don’t deserve it. They were arrogant and mouthing off to me even when they had the lead in the final quarter. I want them to know were hungry for a win next year and that’s what we’re going to get.”
While the Warriors did not clinch the Championship, the team made it to the finals for the first time in six years and displayed Warrior pride on the field.
