Golden Valley football snaps 12-game losing streak to Buhach Colony behind strong run game
The Golden Valley High football team used a strong ground game to snap a 12-game losing streak to Buhach Colony with a 48-23 win on Friday night at Dave Honey Stadium.
The Golden Valley players were well aware of the streak against the Thunder.
“This week was a very big week,” said Golden Valley quarterback Eleazar Garza. “We always talk about leaving a legacy and it’s been since 2008 since Golden Valley has beaten Buhach Colony. It’s close to that Merced rivalry. We always talk about leaving a legacy and this is where it starts.”
Buhach Colony (2-3, 0-1 Central California Conference) started fast as Kailin Frade returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown to give the Thunder a 7-0 lead before the fans had a chance to sit down.
However, Golden Valley came out and ran the ball straight through the Thunder defense.
The Cougars (4-0, 1-0 CCC) marched down the field on their first four possessions and scored touchdowns each time. Golden Valley outgained Buhach Colony 342 yards of offense to 62 in the first half.
Garza and running back Jahkylle Smith took turns gashing the BC defense for big chunks of yards on the ground. The duo combined for 442 rushing yards and seven touchdowns.
Garza finished with 12 carries for 232 yards and three touchdowns and Smith racked up 210 yards and four touchdowns on 23 carries. Garza had touchdown runs of 41, 67 and 49 yards and Smith scored on runs of 10, 5, 13 and 6 yards.
While it’s easy to shine a spotlight on Smith and Garza, the Cougars offensive line of Aden Cuevas, Alex Duran, Trytin Gastelum, Leo Renteria and Andrew Valdez did a lot of the heavy lighting.
“It’s the same old story, the skill guys get the love and the O-line gets forgotten,” said Golden Valley coach Rick Martinez. “We boost those guys. We’re going to have a little steak dinner for those guys because they’ve earned it. They know their role. They love putting their body on a body and moving people.”
Smith said it was his offensive line that said they wanted 200 yards out of him against BC.
“We told our O-line all week this is going to be a big game,” Smith said. “We wanted to show why we can run the ball on them. Buhach Colony has a running back (Jaxson Percoats) but we can ran the ball too. Our O-line was up to the test.”
Percoats finished with 115 rushing yards on 13 carries, including a 49-yard touchdown run.
A convincing win over Buhach Colony was just another statement for a Golden Valley team that now has to be considered a legit contender in the CCC race.
“We’re 4-0, we love it, but we keep thinking about next week, next week, next week,” Garza said.
Next week for the Cougars is a home game against Sierra. Buhach Colony travels to Central Valley.
This story was originally published September 16, 2022 at 11:46 PM.
