Touched by a friend

Adam Candee

Monday, Dec. 1, 2003 | 9:36 a.m.

In football, as in life, the focus at Las Vegas High School is all about moving on one day at a time.

Wildcats coach Kris Cinkovich said as much Saturday after his team's dominating 41-7 home win against Palo Verde in the semifinals of the 4A State Tournament. His boys could not send their emotions beyond Sunday's viewing and this morning's funeral for Edward Gomez, their 17-year-old teammate who died two days after collapsing on the sidelines of Las Vegas' game with Desert Pines on Nov. 21.

Once that step of healing is taken, Cinkovich already feels confident in his team's ability to take the next few as it prepares to travel north and face Reno for the state title. The Huskies defeated Desert Pines, 15-6, in Reno to earn the other title game berth.

"We'll come out and we'll be ready to practice," Cinkovich said. "We're going to finish this deal. It's like we told the kids at halftime -- I know 21's with you, but he'd tell you like anybody else in our program, it's how you finish."

"Obviously, our hearts are heavy and we're trying to play for 21. They're going to dignify that. They're not going to screw that up."

The Wildcats screwed up little in rolling through previously undefeated Palo Verde. Las Vegas forced seven turnovers, including three made by Gomez's friend Stanley Copeland, and scored three touchdowns in the final 4:45 of the third quarter to pull away from the Panthers.

"It feels great because it feels like I honored my friend, and it feels like we did," Copeland said. "Somebody had to feel the wrath of our emotion and it's unfortunate that it had to be Palo Verde."

That emotion began to swell before the game, when the Wildcats honored Gomez by retiring his jersey and presenting a banner to Gomez's mother, Daisy Ramos. About 15 family and friends of Gomez sat together at field level, and they accepted hugs from the small group of players who gave Ramos the banner.

For Gomez's good friend Jacob Robertson, the ceremony brought tears and pain, both of which he turned into positives, including a rushing touchdown.

"I felt more of a sadness," Robertson said. "But I just took it out on the field and left it out there."

"I felt like (Eddie) was playing with me the whole time -- two in one. I'm playing, but he's in there with me."

While it would seem that the Wildcats might try to harness the emotion from Gomez's death once more against the Huskies on Saturday at the University of Nevada-Reno's Mackay Stadium, Robertson feels his teammates will be more composed and prepared.

"Since we've dealt with it, I think we can play now," Robertson said. "With focus and mental preparation instead of mourning off of him and playing with a lot of anger."

In the final two weeks of the regular season, Las Vegas lost starting quarterback Chris Gifford and running back Eric Jordan to season-ending injuries. Since that time, Cinkovich continually spoke about how no one in the Las Vegas program makes excuses for such things.

Even in Gomez's tragic circumstances, Cinkovich's team again found a way to raise its level of play under duress.

"You have to deal with it," Cinkovich said. "And that's what the game teaches you."

The game certainly helped the Wildcats get past the traumatic first week without Gomez.

"I feel relieved," Robertson said of winning Saturday. "I feel relaxed, excited, proud. I felt proud of myself."

At 13-0, Las Vegas exudes not only pride, but an amazing confidence in its ability to overcome just about anything.

"Now, you can see the finish line," Cinkovich said. "We have to finish. We can see it now and we have to finish."

Copeland said the Wildcats would be ready to do just that against Reno.

"Nothing's a given, and I think (we) know that," Copeland said. "That's why we fought so hard. We're going to come out and play with this much, or two times the emotion."