Lions fall in season opener to Victoria West

By Anthony Collins

LPR Editor                             

Under the Friday night lights at Lion Stadium, the Lockhart Lions kicked off their 2025 season against the visiting Victoria West Warriors. A weather delay pushed kickoff back to 8:15 p.m., but when play finally began, the Lions couldn’t overcome early mistakes and a powerful Warrior attack, falling 54–6 in their home opener.

     Despite the tough loss, several Lions stood out on offense. Sophomore Ezequiel Navarro led the ground game with 59 rushing yards on 11 carries, while junior Kaidyn Brite added 45 yards on 7 carries. Junior Braeden Pereda chipped in 30 yards, giving Lockhart 132 rushing yards on 30 carries.

     Through the air, senior quarterback Noel Jaimes threw for 54 yards, while sophomore quarterback Noah Jaimes added 13 yards. Freshman Demonte Anthony provided the offensive highlight of the night with a 53-yard reception that set up Lockhart’s lone scoring opportunity. Sophomore George McGee added a 13-yard catch, while Brite pulled in a short reception.

     Overall, the Lions finished with 199 total yards of offense, 132 rushing and 67 passing. However, two costly fumbles (one by Brite and one by Navarro) stalled drives and gave the Warriors short fields, which they capitalized on to build momentum.

     Defensively, Lockhart forced two fumbles and grabbed an interception, showing flashes of toughness against a top-ranked opponent. The Lions also showed discipline, drawing only one penalty compared to 13 in their Elgin scrimmage.

     Head Coach Mike Maldonado echoed what many in the community felt, a frustrating night, but not one without progress.

     “Just as every fan in Lockhart, we hoped to come out on the other side of the scoreboard and upset the #12 team in the state,” Maldonado said. “Hats off to Victoria West, it was evident to see why they’ve been picked in various predictions to be playing into late November.”

     Maldonado noted that while the scoreboard told one story, the game film told another. “Football usually comes down to 3–4 plays that swing the momentum either way. We can easily point out five of those plays that, had they gone our way, I’d be sitting here typing a completely different summary.”

     He emphasized that while mental errors are expected in a season opener, the focus moving forward will be fixing the “critical” mistakes that led to turnovers and points for the opponent. “The beauty of this game is that it is so detail oriented. One wrong inch you miss by a mile. You change that inch, and that could be the difference between winning and losing. That is our focus as a staff, to find and fix that inch,” stated Maldonado.

     He praised his team’s resilience and effort: “What I saw when I cut on the tape was a team that didn’t quit, didn’t blame, and continued to press forward. The flashes of potential were evident, huge plays on offense, defensive stops, turnovers forced, and improved discipline,” said Maldonado.

     Prior to the game Coach Maldonado left his players with two challenges:

1. Empty the tank for your teammates every game.

2. Raise your consistency as individuals and as a team.

     “I truly believe we achieved the first goal,” Maldonado said. “Now it’s up to all of us, staff included, to ensure our level of consistency rises. The boys are hungry to take the next step in the process, and that’s our focus for the next eight weeks, embracing the process of unraveling our potential and maximizing our ceiling every day.”

     The Lions will be back at home this week against the Southwest Dragons, aiming to turn the lessons of a tough opener into growth