1952 Warriors
Pictured above are front row, left to right, Byron Early, Ruben Montana, Bill Spencer, Dwain Palmer, Charles Burk,
middle row, Dwayne Stevens, Norman Wills, Alfonso Muro, Harold Faulkner, Dick Fritz, Harry Cowan, Kim Cummings,
Manuel Terrazas, top row, Ernie Muro, Harmon Fletcher, Kenneth Peters, Victor Cortez, Merle Gilliland, Dick Johnson,
John Cummings, Jack Gassaway, and Coach Goodell (David Elizondo not pictured).
The 1952 Warriors won their fifth straight South Sierra League Championship and their second consecutive San Joaquin Sierra Division "small schools" football championship. Back-To-Back Valley Championships!
1952 Warriors Finish 9-1; 5-0 in Sierra League
The Warriors finished with an overall season record of 9 wins and 1 loss; 5-0 in South Sierra League play.
In the season opener, under wet desert skies, and soggy field conditions, the Barstow Riffians scored with just 40 seconds left in the game to defeat the Warriors, 7-0, in a rough, penalty ridden game. The Barstow win snapped a 16 game Warrior winning streak dating back to the first game of 1950. The last Warrior loss was also against Barstow.
In Week 2, the Warriors got into the win column with a dominating 31-6 win over Trona. Harmon Fletcher led Tehachapi with two TD runs.
The Warriors improved to 2-1 in Week 3, with a 27-7 stomping of Victorville. Al Muro hit "Butch" Stevens on a 13 yard TD pass play; Fletcher scored on a 31 yard TD run; Al Muro connected with Jack Gassaway on a 10 yard pass play; and Ernie Muro found Byron Early in the end zone for the final TD pass.
The offensive show continued in Week 4 with a 25 to 6 win over the Bakersfield High junior varsity team. QB Al Muro scored on runs of 2 and 1 yards; Fletcher scored on a short run and led Tehachapi with over 100 yards rushing; and Fletcher also passed to David Elizondo for a 38 yard TD pass play.
In Week 5 the Hilltoppers blanked the East High varsity reserves, 27-0. Fletcher rushed for 116 yards rushing and scored 1 TD; Ernie Muro scored on two short TD runs; and Al Muro passed to Early on a 39 yard TD pass play. Harold Faulkner also drop kicked 3 PAT's.
Tehachapi crushed the Delano junior varsity in the biggest offensive showing of the season, 53-13, in Week 6. The Warriors did not pass one time in this contest. Fletcher scored three TD's on runs of 30, 8, and 10 yards; Elizondo scored two TD's on runs of 30 and 20 yards; Ernie Muro scored on a 2 yard run; Faulkner returned an interception 50 yards for a TD; and Ken Peters scored on a 25 yard run.
Back to league play, the Warriors rolled over the Rams at Garces heights, 34-7. Jack Gassaway ignited the Warriors with an electrifying 80 yard interception return for a TD; Ernie Muro passed to Early for the second TD; Muro-to-Gassaway-to-Victor Cortez for the third TD; and Cortez added two more TD's on short run plays.
Tehachapi improved to 4-0 in league play with an easy 25-0 shutout of Maricopa in Week 8. Scoring plays included a Muro-to-Gassaway-to-Early 12 yard pass play; an Elizondo 12 yard run; a Gassaway punt recovery in the end zone; and a Muro to Peters 12 yard pass play.
In their final league game, the Warriors met McFarland for the league championship. Playing in a snow storm, the Warriors defeated McFarland by scoring a touchdown with 1:23 left in the game as fullback David Elizondo scored from 5 yards out. The start time of the game was delayed 40 minutes as the officals tried to make it up the hill from Bakersfield.
The Warriors won the valley championship over Parlier in a fog shrouded game at Kingsburg, 20-7. Harmon Fletcher paced the Warriors by rushing for nearly 200 yards, and scoring two touchdowns. The first Warrior score came on a Muro-to-Gassaway-to-Cortez pass play good for 35 yards.
Dick Fritz proved to be one of the best lineman in Warrior history as he was awarded the team Most Valuable Player award.
Warrior running back Harmon Fletcher #2 gallops for a big gain on Imhof Field in Tehachapi.
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LISTING OF SIERRA CHAMPS
FROM 1931-1956
Game-by-Game Results
OPPONENT THS OPP L GAME HIGHLIGHT Sep 19 Barstow 00 07 A Sep 27 Trona 31 06 H Harmon Fletcher: 2 TD's Oct 4 Victorville 27 07 H Jack Gassaway: 2 TD's Oct 11 Bakersfield JV's *
25 06 H David Elizondo: 1 TD Pass Rec. Oct 18 East High JV's (Bakersfield) * 27 00 H Harmon Fletcher: 1 TD, 118 yds. rushing Oct 25 Delano JV's 53 13 H Harmon Fletcher: 3 TD's Nov 1 Garces *
34 07 A Jack Gassaway: 1 TD, 80 yard interception return Nov 8 Maricopa * 25 00 H Jack Gassaway: 1 TD, punt recovery in end zone Nov 15 McFarland * 07 00 H David Elizondo: 1 TD Run * Denotes Sierra League Game
San Joaquin Valley Championship
OPPONENT THS OPP L GAME HIGHLIGHT Nov 21 Parlier 20 07 A Harmon Fletcher: 2 TD's
Warrior running back #13 Harold Faulkner busts his way through the East Bakersfield High linemen.
