Warriors try to bounce back in homecoming game

The Westside varsity football team suffered their first loss of the season in a tight battle at North Platte last week 21-17, setting up tonight’s intriguing Homecoming matchup against Kearney.

Following the one score loss, the Warriors dropped to number three in the Class A rankings and second in the NSAA wild card standings.

“We just got toughed out last week,” junior quarterback Anthony Rezac said. “We know we were out worked, so everyone including players and coaches are working super hard to make sure that doesn’t happen again.”

Kearney is led by senior quarterback Trayven Beckman, who is ranked sixth in Class A in passing yardage. Beckman has already thrown 14 touchdown passes.The Bearcats have played stellar this season, with an impressive 5-1 record. The Bearcats are slotted just one spot below the Warriors and ranked fourth in the state.

“We know it’s going to be a dogfight Friday,” sophomore linebacker Christian Jones said. “Losing doesn’t feel good, so the team has practiced all week with chips on our shoulders.”

No one likes to lose, especially this Westside team who jumped out to a 5-0 start. The biggest key is to be able to take a loss and learn from it, using it as motivation for the next game.

“The biggest key for us is to be able to look past the loss,” Jones said. “It’s a new game, and we feel we have something to prove against a solid Kearney team.”

Westside practices how they play, and it has been a big reason as to why the Warriors have been so successful this season. Westside has been able to scheme against their opponents and use their strengths to their advantage. 

“We’ve had a very intense week of practice,” Rezac said. “I feel all the guys are ready to go.”

Fourth-ranked Kearney will make the road trip to take on the third-ranked Warriors in a can’t-miss top five matchup at Phelps Field. Westsisde’s Homecoming game will kickoff at 7 p.m.