Column: Sterling Salguero carries Birmingham to key victory

After carrying the ball an exhausting 46 times for 351 yards and three touchdowns in a 29-26 victory over Woodland Hills Taft on Friday night, Sterling Salguero of Lake Balboa Birmingham went home to sleep and finally woke up at 10 a.m. Saturday morning so he could attend a team film session.

“Otherwise, I’d still be sleeping,” the senior running back said. “I feel really sore, but it’s a great feeling and worth all the pain. They had complete trust in me and I didn’t want to let them down.”

The win moves Birmingham (5-3, 3-0) into position to win the West Valley League championship and contend for the No. 2 seed behind Harbor City Narbonne in the City Section Division I playoffs.

Salguero has rushed for 4,878 yards in his four years at Birmingham. And that he came very close to transferring to Calabasas during the summer makes him feel even more grateful he stayed.

“I’m glad I didn’t go,” he said. “I’m here with my coaches and my friends. I love playing every Friday night with them.”

The big story in City Section Division I is parity, except for one thing. It’s Narbonne, then everyone else.

“Between two and 13, I don’t think there’s that much difference right now,” Birmingham Coach Jim Rose said.

Like father, like son

Charles Mincy Jr., a freshman running back at Dorsey and the son of the 1991 Rose Bowl most valuable player from Washington, rushed for 110 yards in six carries and scored one touchdown in the Dons’ 56-15 win over Manual Arts. His father is Dorsey’s defensive coordinator.

The Lara magic

In 13 years at Long Beach Poly, Raul Lara won five Southern Section championships and 12 Moore League titles. That still wasn’t good enough for some people. He resigned after the 2013 season, saying he needed a new challenge.

He showed up at Warren in Downey, a program that went 0-10 in 2013. After guiding the team to a 5-5 record last season, Lara now has the Bears at 7-1 and set to play for the San Gabriel Valley League championship following a 23-6 win over Downey.

Quarterback Jordan Yancy led Warren with a 16-yard touchdown pass and eight-yard touchdown run. Warren faces Compton Dominguez next week.

Big QB nights

Mique Juarez of North Torrance ran for four touchdowns and passed for three more in a 69-0 win over Torrance.

Quentin Davis of Bellflower St. John Bosco passed for 311 yards and five touchdowns in a 61-7 win over San Juan Capistrano JSerra. It was the Braves’ 19th consecutive Trinity League win.

Brock Johnson of Mission Viejo completed 17 of 20 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns in a 48-20 win over previously unbeaten San Juan Capistrano San Juan Hills. The Diablos (9-0) have a 21-game win streak.

eric.sondheimer@latimes.com

Twitter: @LATSondheimer