OCTOBER 23, 2013

Falcons’ 35-20 win over Paradise Valley highlights CSHS Homecoming

Antonio Marchica’s 285 rushing yards spark clinching of at least .500 season; At #2 Chaparral on Friday
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cshs homecoming scott warren and samantha vaughn Traditionally driven by none other than CCUSD Superintendent Dr. Debbi Burdick, Homecoming 2013 King & Queen, Scott Warren and Samantha Vaughn, get ready for their coronation lap around the Falcon Stadium track. King Scott is the son of Creekers Mark and Susie Warren. Queen Samantha is the daughter of Steve and Laurie Vaughn from north Scottsdale. Hail to the King and his lovely Queen! Sonoran News extends congratulations to all who made the Homecoming week successful!
  Courtesy Photo
(All members of the Homecoming Court are listed on the right sidebar.)
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CCUSD – “Progress is our most important product.” So proclaimed General Electric’s years-ago advertising slogan … or was it Westinghouse? Whatever. Last Friday night, before an overflow Homecoming crowd, Head Coach Greg Davis and his Falcons staked their own claim to “progress” – a shutout by the Falcon “D” in the second half, sealing a 35-20 victory over the Paradise Valley Trojans. The win, propelled by sophomore running back Antonio Marchica’s 285 rushing yards, was the Falcons’ 5th, assuring them of at least a .500 mark for the first season since 2010.

This Friday night, at #2 Chaparral, it will be the Falcons as “David,” against the Firebirds “Goliath.” Don’t think Cactus Shadows has the chance of a snowball in an Arizona August? I give you Joe Namath (who turned 70 this past summer) and his New York Jets in 1969, Super Bowl III vs. the 19-point favored Baltimore Colts. That iconic upset is credited with accelerating the NFL-AFL merger – with the Valley’s own (the late) Gov. Joe Foss one of the principal negotiators. Don’t bet your equivalent of the proverbial “house,” but … “on any given Friday night …”.

For the injury-decimated #20 Falcons (missing 12 starters at last count) at Chaparral, respectability and no additional player loss will be good enough. On Friday night, November 1, “Senior Night,” I like the Falcons chances to upend the #25 Arcadia for win number 6, elevating CSHS into the rarified atmosphere of a 6-4 winning season. Congratulations (not premature) are due all around. The always unpredictable injury "bug" bit the Falcons hard and in key positions. Defensive back Mikey Leonard (possible torn ACL) is the latest casualty.

But consider this: throwing out the last-seconds disasters at Higley and Notre Dame (played at SCC), the Falcons might well be 7-1 … and headed to the Division II State Playoffs. Their post-seaon hopes will stay mathematically alive, assuming the Falcons will get win number 6 in the "Senior Night" regular season finale. But you just read that 7-1 "what if" from this sportswriter – not Coach Davis or the Falcons. They didn’t make “excuses” – they made “good” – with the players who stayed healthy.

So congratulations again to all in the Falcon Football community – and to the excited young ladies and young men who were honored by their Cactus Shadows peers at last Friday’s halftime presentation of the 2013 Homecoming Court. That celebration will make for a high school memory they’ll never forget … just as it should be.

~Pete Mohr