As Agoura High School’s football team made the quick bus ride up the road to Oak Park High School, tensions were high with this ongoing school rivalry. Although they try to keep competitions friendly, the two schools fiercely battled it out for the Kanan Bowl.

The two teams were ready to go head-to-head this year after the Eagles lost last year’s Kanan Bowl to Agoura 23-7. This year, the Eagles brought the trophy onto their turf with a 27-0 shutout. 

According to senior Riley Braddock, the Eagles made sure that the game would have an even playing field.

“The rivalry between Agoura and Oak Park sparked a lot of aggression on the field this year,” said Braddock. “We were ready to use that to our advantage.”

The defense played a great game, sacking the Agoura quarterback eight times. Juniors Adrian Szabo and Jaden Mosley led the defense, with two sacks each. 

With the 27-0 win, senior Rowan Heidt scored 12 points, senior Hayden Lynch scored six points, senior Landon Holmes scored six points, and junior kicker Will Struyk scored three points. 

The Oak Park offense ran the game as well. Our two quarterbacks, senior Kadyn Parr and junior Holden Heidt threw for touchdowns. Seniors Rowan Heidt and Hayden Lynch carried the offense, leading the team in receiving yards. Agoura only threw for 86.3 yards while Parr alone threw for 148.1 yards. 

Statistics aside, this game was one that the Eagles needed desperately to win; it was the homecoming game, and a win that could turn the tables to get Oak Park back on track for playoffs. 

The night of the game, the Eagles packed the student section in all white. Chants were going on the whole night to encourage our team to take the win. OPHS showed up and overpowered Agoura’s student section, giving the boys the energy they needed. 

As the Homecoming Court was announced at halftime, the energy in the stands was palpably ecstatic. Another driving factor that brought up the boys’ spirits was that the homecoming king was a member of the team, senior JD Baumann. The queen, senior Derica Chiu, is also directly involved with the team, taking pictures of them during games.

While the final whistle blew, the fans were yelling their hearts out, beyond happy that they had won the homecoming game and finally brought the trophy into Oak Park territory. This game could not have been more impressive, not only because of the statistics, but because the boys proved that they had what it takes to end the rivalry with Agoura this year. And with the help of the student section, the encouraging chants brought winning energy to the field.