High School Football: Estancia ‘in a good spot’

After a 24-14 upset win against Calvary Chapel High, Estancia is excited. How excited is Estancia?

The Estancia Eagles began practice for the CIF Southern Section Southern Division playoffs Monday morning at 7. There were no classes at the school because of Veteran’s Day, but that just meant more time to prepare for the Eagles.

“Everyone is fired up,” Bargas said.

The Eagles (5-5) are fired up because they played their best game of the season against Calvary Chapel and catapulted to second place in the Orange Coast League with a 3-2 record.

Estancia is one of five Newport-Mesa area teams to be in the CIF Southern Section playoffs, which begin Friday. The Eagles open at Los Amigos (8-2), the Garden Grove League’s second-place team, at Bolsa Grande.

Bargas is hoping for a better showing from his Eagles than last year when Los Amigos beat Estancia, 41-14, in the first round.

The Eagles will need another strong defensive effort, similar to their performance against Calvary Chapel. Tyler Thomas, a junior middle linebacker, led the way with 14 solo tackles, eight assisted tackles and one interception.

“We’re in a good spot,” Bargas said of the type of football the Eagles are playing at this point in the season. “Our mental psyche and our physical play are great. That’s how you want to finish. Things are jelling for us. Calvary was a high-powered offensive team. Our defense played well, and so did our offense and special teams. It was a pretty complete football game for us.”

Bargas said injuries hurt Estancia early on, but the Eagles have gained health and improved heading into the playoffs.

They are on a three-game winning streak that began with a 55-41 victory over Godinez.

“Godinez was a pivotal game for us,” said Bargas, whose team bounced back from a 59-14 loss at Laguna Beach with the win against the Grizzlies. “The Calvary game was big for us too. They had scored so many points before and our defense stepped up. We needed to make the playoffs … the way we looked at it, last week was our first playoff game.”

CdM (10-0), the two-time back-to-back Southern Division champion, is the top seed in the Southern Division. The Sea Kings open against Loara (6-4). The Estancia-Los Amigos winner will likely face CdM.