Cibola, Gila Ridge collide in season finale
Cibola and Gila Ridge’s cross-town football rivalry is fairly new.
But it is fierce.
The two schools’ football history dates back just 12 years. Cibola has won nine of 12 meetings – including five of the last six times. But records don’t matter in this game. The team entering this contest with a losing record has won 33% of the games – the last occurring in Cibola’s thrilling overtime victory over previously undefeated Gila Ridge in 2019.
“Absolutely,” said Cibola head coach Steven Fritz about ignoring the records. “On paper (in 2019) we were the clear underdogs back then. For those of you that like to compare results from other scores between common opponents. I know there’s some people that like to do that.
“We played a team earlier in (2019) and lost and (Gila Ridge) beat them by 40 points. Common opponents and looking at that, you can throw it out the window. It doesn’t mean anything, especially in a rivalry game.”
The loss still stings in the minds of players donning the blue and black.
“Having that experience from two years ago and losing the last game (to clinch a perfect season) was tough,” Gila Ridge senior Johnathan Noriega said. “We’re ready to get our revenge.”
Cibola and Gila Ridge have had polar opposite seasons. The Raiders sit at 5-4 and have won three straight games, while the Hawks are 1-8 and have dropped four consecutive contests. Again, throw the records out. The two teams are familiar with each other, with many players having grown up playing pop warner together and sharing similar friend groups.
“It’s always a good com