Valencia defeated Hart 45-26 on Friday night in the annual Santa Clarita Valley rivalry game, securing its fourth consecutive Foothill League championship. Both teams entered with the league title on the line.
The Vikings, now 8-2 overall and 6-0 in league play, were slow out of the gate. Hart took a 6-0 lead just over four minutes into the game when Camren Ketner threw a 47-yard touchdown pass to Matix Frithsmith.
Valencia answered late in the first quarter. Running back Nico Funez scored from 7 yards out with one minute left in the period, putting the Vikings ahead 7-6.
The teams then traded scores through the second quarter. Hart regained the lead at 20-14 with 34 seconds left in the half, when Ketner hit Silas Tucker down the right seam for a 20-yard touchdown. Valencia kicker Tyler Thornton responded with a 33-yard field goal, cutting the margin to 20-17 at halftime.
The game turned in the third quarter, when Valencia scored 21 unanswered points. Senior Anthony Vernon began the run by returning the second-half kickoff 60 yards for a touchdown and a 24-20 lead. Valencia head coach Larry Muir said the plan was built around Hart's kicking approach. "We knew that they were pop kicking and they didn't wanna kick it deep, so we were trying to maneuver our guys around that hopefully one of 'em would get to (Caysen) Badawi or Vernon, and that one got to Vernon," Muir said.
The Vikings then turned to a trick play. Funez threw a 44-yard touchdown pass to Badawi on a halfback pass, extending the lead to 31-20. Funez said the play was installed only days earlier. "We installed it Wednesday night," he said, adding that he practiced it about twice that night and again in Thursday's walkthrough. "I was kinda nervous. I was like, 'What if I throw a pick?' so I just chucked a prayer, not gonna lie. But I was really happy to complete it to Caysen. Credit to Caysen, he ran a great route."
Hart never recovered, and Valencia closed out the win to take the league crown.
The result also carried historical weight. Valencia moved ahead in the all-time series for the first time, 17-16-1, after losing its first 10 meetings with the Hawks.
Muir, who is in his 30th year on the Valencia coaching staff, said he remembers those early years well. "It's a legacy. I'm the old guy that I remember in the first 10 years we were 0-10," he said. "Those were rough times." He pointed to the alumni on the sideline as part of what the win represented, saying it is gratifying to see former players who helped build the program now as fathers and members of the community. "That's the real joy part of it. That's the legacy."
