Shadow Hills defends Mayor’s Cup with big win over Indio
Shadow Hills opens new season with 33-8 win over Indio
Shadow Hills defeats Indio 33-8 in the Mayor’s Cup
While a lot has changed for the Shadow Hills High School football team since last year, one thing has remained the same. The Knights have never lost a Mayor’s Cup game against cross-town rival Indio High School.
“We know it, we know it,” Shadow Hills running back Jo Jo Diaz said after the Knights posted a 33-8 victory over the Rajahs in both teams’ season opener. “Indio, of course, hasn’t won in years and we wanted to keep it that way and we did.”
The victory at Indio High School’s Ed White Stadium means Shadow Hills has now won all eight of its Mayor’s Cup games. But it was the manner in which the Knights won the game that impressed head coach David Palmer.
“We’re actually playing with a team that has less talent than last year,” Palmer said. “We have half the talent we had last year. Last year we should have been somebody, but we had a lot of discipline issues. This year we don’t. We’re playing with less talent, but they’re playing with more heart.”
The Knights benefited from a shaky early game by Indio, playing its first game under new head coach Lamont Thompson. By the time Indio’s passing game got going, Shadow Hills was up 23-0 late in the second quarter.
In the second half, the Rajahs had to throw the ball and the Knights put heavy pressure on Indio quarterback Michael Silva. Shadow Hills also ran the ball better in the second half. Palmer said the team is still getting used to a new offensive scheme this year.
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“(Indio) gave us a better look (on defense) of what we need to improve, which I like,” Palmer said. “But we have Jo Jo in the back pocket. We’ll get our lines better.”
The moment
The Knights already led 7-0 after a 12-yard run by quarterback Pedro Trujillo and scored on a five-minute, 57-yard run early in the second quarter, with Trujillo again scoring from 2 yards out to make it 14-0, and the Rajahs were never closer than that lead for the rest of the game.
The stars
Diaz scored both of his touchdowns after a slow start to the game, but finished with 65 yards on 16 carries. Trujillo scored both of his touchdowns and also completed nine passes for 85 yards. Kicker Alexander Cervantes Castaneda made two field goals of 25 and 37 yards.
For Indio, receiver Isaiah Woodward scored the only touchdown on a 30-yard pass from Silva and finished the night with 111 yards on six catches. Silva completed 11 of 24 passes for 165 yards.
The chatter
After the game, the Shadow Hills coaching staff spoke of a renewed positive attitude as the team shared the Mayor’s Cup with teammates and coaches.
“That’s the process we’re in right now,” Palmer said. “We want everything to be positive. That’s something we’ve been telling the team this year.”
The last shot
The Rajahs hurt themselves early in the game when they had a fumbled punt and a blocked punt, putting too much pressure on Silva as he struggled to find his receivers. In the second half, many of those mistakes disappeared and the Rajahs played better, so there’s reason to believe Indio will steadily improve ahead of their Desert Valley League opener. The Knights, on the other hand, have already started talking about improving some things after the blowout win. Palmer is pleased the team has an easier non-league schedule to get used to playing in the Desert Empire League.
What happens next?
Shadow Hills plays at home against Palo Verde Valley of Blythe next Friday, while Indio has a home game against Hemet on Thursday.
