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Hayden’s Jorge Rodriguez (33) heads down field during the first round of playoffs.
It wasn’t the Hayden football team’s best performance, but it was good enough to reach this week’s quarterfinals after the No. 5 Lobos defeated No. 12 Anthem Prep in the first-round of the 1A State Championship Playoffs last Friday, 34 – 21.
“It was ugly, but we’ll take the (win),” Hayden head coach John Estrada said. “Anthem Prep brought it. We made many mistakes. In order for us to stay alive in the playoffs we need to play our best football.”
The Lobos will make the more than three-hour trip to face No. 4 Salome in the quarterfinals this Friday.
“It’s a concern, and our away record is not good by any means,” Estrada said about the long trip.
What’s it going to take to defeat the Frogs?
“Salome is very fast,” Estrada responded. “They run a lot of misdirection plays. We’ll need to stay home and do our jobs and be physical.”
Friday’s kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Hayden brings the ball down field on the way to another touchdown.
A Hayden defender brings down an Anthem Prep player.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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