An easy win last week in the season-opener made for a feel-good Friday, but La Quinta High football coach Juan Ruiz knew Thursday night's road game against a tough Rancho Verde team would be a better indicator of the type of team he has.
Well, he learned he's got a mentally tough team capable of grinding out close wins on the road. La Quinta went to Moreno Valley to face a strong program in Rancho Verde, and the Blackhawks came home with a 13-6 win.
The defense was flying around, the offense scraped together enough points and the Blackhawks are 2-0.
"The fact that we went over there and were able to grind it out was good to see from our kids. We've got some fight in us," Ruiz said. "There's a lot to celebrate, but still a lot that needs to be corrected."
Trailing 6-3 at halftime, La Quinta put together the best drive of the night to start the third quarter. They went on an epic nine-minute-long beauty, using their running game, that ended in a 3-yard touchdown run by Lorenzo Herrera.
Quarterback and kicker Roman Ansley added his second field goal of the night in the fourth quarter, and the defense held up the rest of the way.
Ruiz said running back Aiden Nsubuga was banged up during the game, and Sebastian Osorio came in and ran well.
The Blackhawks' coach said the offense was really hamstrung by penalties, and that is something that needs to be corrected, as well as finishing drives. He said they had a fumble in the red zone on one possession, and the two drives that resulted in field goals could've been touchdowns if they didn't keep putting themsleves behind the sticks with penalties.
But all that being said, he was pleased, of course, to get the win.
"Our defense played well. They were flying to the ball and playing really sound football," Ruiz said. "We still made mistakes, but the fact that we're running to the football always gives us a shot. Gotta correct penalties on offense, a lot of stupid stuff put us behind the chains, but it was a hard-earned win."
La Quinta (2-0) will return home Friday, Sept. 13 to host a traditionally tough Sultana squad. Kickoff is at 7 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: La Quinta football grinds out impressive road win over Rancho Verde
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