The Granada Hills Charter (GHC) football team fell to the undefeated Cleveland Charter High School Cavaliers 37-7 in their Homecoming game on October 23.
Cleveland took an early lead and held GHC scoreless through the first three quarters. The Highlanders got on the board in the fourth quarter with a 1-yard touchdown by junior running back Wale Adeleye.
“We finally put some points on the board, but it was kind of devastating because of the score,” Adeleye said. “But I needed to keep my head up because the game wasn’t over. We need to play every snap as if the score is zero-zero.”
The Cavaliers led 16-0 in the second quarter when the Highlanders came close to scoring. GHC reached the goal line but was stopped, turning the ball over on downs. Cleveland ran for a touchdown extending the Cavaliers lead to 30-0.
Adeleye’s touchdown and junior Isaac Gutierrez’s extra point brought the score to 30-7. Adeleye finished the game with 95 rushing yards on 19 carries. Cleveland later scored, followed by an extra point bringing the final score to 37-7.
The loss brought the Highlanders’ record to 4-5. Last season, the team ended their season with an overall record of 5-6 and a league record of 3-2 before being eliminated in the first round of the 2025 CIF Los Angeles City Section Division I playoffs.
“This season, we have pushed ourselves more because of the results of previous years,” senior varsity player Mateo Loza-D’Alterio said. “We have continued to have the same mindset of going for a winning record and making a deep playoff run. With this season’s success, we hope to achieve our expectations and continue our chase of a championship title.”
Twenty-one players from last year’s 50-player roster graduated, leaving the Highlanders with many new starters. This season Adeleye has scored 11 touchdowns, while senior Matthew Faris has averaged 11 tackles per game.
“Going into the playoffs, I feel like the team has a lot of potential,” Adeleye said. “We can go on a run, but the team needs to stay connected and locked in. We need to truly play as a team. During practice, we need to focus.”
GHC will host the Taft Charter High School Toreadors on senior night Friday October 30 at 7:00 p.m. Both teams enter the game with 4-5 records. A win would bring the Highlanders’ regular-season record to 5-5.
