What a rush: Highland RB duo tops 350 yards in win over Mayfield

William Anchondo provided the lightning and Jose Tapia brought the thunder — in that order.

The Highland running back duo combined for 355 yards and five touchdowns as the No. 8 Hornets took a 36-22 victory over ninth-seeded Mayfield (2-9) in a Class 5A first-round matchup at Milne Stadium on Friday night. It’s Highland’s second consecutive first-round playoff victory after besting Miyamura as a ninth seed in 2024.

“Man, thinking about where we started nine years ago when I took over the program to now, it’s kind of surreal,” said Highland coach Philip Lovato. “Especially out of our 11 starters, (we have) five sophomores, three juniors, and a couple of seniors. We’re dealing with a lot of young guys that are just balling. They’re playing hard for each other and it means a lot.”

Anchondo set the tone early for the Hornets (7-4), scoring the first two Highland touchdowns on runs of 56 and 63 yards. The sophomore tacked on an 18-yard jaunt for a first-half hat trick to give his team a 20-8 lead going into halftime.

“It’s an important game. As a sophomore, I really care about my seniors this year. And I just want to lead them as far as we could go,” said Anchondo, who finished with 161 yards on just six carries. “Huge thanks to my line, too. It wouldn’t be possible without them.”

When Anchondo was shaken up in the third quarter, the bruising Tapia put the load on his shoulders. The senior running back carried the ball on 13 of 14 plays — including a three-yard TD — on a backbreaking third-quarter drive that gave the Hornets a 28-8 advantage. Tapia, who added another score in the fourth quarter, had a workmanlike 194 yards on 32 carries.

“When (Anchondo) kind of got banged up there, Tapia just knew it’s on him,” Lovato said. “… It was like, ‘I got this.’ So having those guys, it’s everything.”

Though he was helped off the field during that aforementioned drive, Anchondo would return to the game before Tapia scored.

Mayfield may look back at consecutive drives in the second and third quarters as the most pivotal point in the game. The Trojans had the ball on the Highland 5 with two seconds remaining in the first half, but quarterback Xavier Ochoa was intercepted in the end zone by Curtis Ryan as time expired. Mayfield had the ball to start the third quarter, but turned it over on downs after moving to the Highland 32.

While Mayfield did get to within 36-22 and had possession after recovering an onside kick with more than six minutes to play, a fumble extinguished any hopes of a rally.

Highland will face a tall task when they travel to the Bulldog Bowl to face top-seeded Artesia next weekend.

“That’s the mecca. And so now we’re there,” Lovato said. “For our kids to have this opportunity to go down there and see what football is, I’m excited for all of us. Now we’re just playing with house money.”