WEEK FOUR FOOTBALL: Lunzer, Valley Christian Dominate St. Anthony in Emotional Victory

VALLEY CHRISTIAN senior Sam Melcher (No. 2) goes high for a reception against St. Anthony last Friday. Melcher caught eight passes for 114 yards and three touchdowns as the Defenders rolled to a 47-22 victory. Valley Christian players wore green wristbands and socks in support of former teammate Oliver Boateng, who remains hospitalized following serious injuries.

September 21, 2026

By Loren Kopff
@LorenKopff on X

Valley Christian High’s third straight home game wasn’t the only thing going on last Friday when the Defenders faced St. Anthony High. Besides the 47-22 victory that improved V.C.’s record to 3-1-1 heading into its bye ahead of Ironwood League action, the team played with heavy hearts as one of the stars from last season’s CIF-Southern Section Division 9 championship team, Oliver Boateng, is in intensive care unit with some broken bones and some lower extremities.

V.C. head coach Brendan Chambers would not disclose many details about his situation, but the Defenders wore green wristbands and socks in honor of Boateng’s favorite color.

“It happened on Tuesday, and I found out Tuesday afternoon,” said Chambers. “He’s in the hospital right now; he’s gone through a couple of surgeries and has another one to go. But he’s fighting. It’s been an emotional week for myself and for this team. I was able to take some of the coaches and some of the players up last night to see him, and I think that was a huge help for us to kind of get ready for tonight. They all wanted to wear the green [accessories] because he always wore the green cleats, and it kind of made it special. But it’s been a tough week for us.”

Chambers went on to say that he told the team he didn’t think he called the best game, but the players picked him up and that was his challenge to them.

Senior quarterback Graham Lunzer was his typical self, completing 21 of 27 passes for 192 yards and all six touchdowns the Defenders had. Half of those touchdowns went to senior tight end Sam Melcher as he had eight receptions for 114 yards. But it was a 17-yard connection to senior wide receiver Liam Sweeney that got the scoring barrage going less than three minutes into the game.

With the score knotted at 7-7 after the first quarter, Melcher caught a 49-yard, and a two-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter as the Defenders went into halftime with a 21-7 lead.

“Sam has been huge; I look back to that Gahr game [at the beginning of the season] and I feel like we just didn’t give him the ball enough offensively,” said Chambers. “Now we’re just trying to find ways to get him the ball, whether it’s a jet sweep or throwing it to him. He’s a two-way player for us; he never comes off the field, and he plays special teams for us as well. He’s just been a huge part of our success for us offensively and defensively. And he’s stepped up as a leader too, both on the field and off the field.”

V.C. has led at halftime in every game except the 34-0 loss to Mary Star of the Sea High by a combined score of 92-61. And even though he was in the locker room with his team, Chambers, who has been the head coach here for three and a half seasons, voiced his opinion of the four former head coaches who were recognized for their induction into the V.C. Coaches Hall of Fame.

“There’s ton of history here and there are a lot of coaches that have come through here and left a legacy,” said Chambers. “I’m proud to be a part of that. But it’s just a special place; the community that we have and those coaches that laid the foundation and all the sports that they coached is truly special. And it’s what makes Valley Christian special, too.”

The Defenders increased their lead to 28-7 early in the second half on a 14-yard connection from Lunzer to sophomore wide receiver Levi Dean and after the Saints scored a minute later when Juice Smith hauled in a 65-yard touchdown pass from Aidan Jones, That would be followed by Lunzer’s five-yard touchdown pass to Melcher with 2:09 left in the third quarter, then a seven-yard score from Lunzer to Sweeney with 9:57 left in the game,

A safety off a bad snap from center when the Saints were forced to punt from their 12-yard line and a 35-yard field goal from sophomore Dylan VanderMolen rounded out the scoring for the Defenders, who have now scored at least 35 points in their three victories plus the 35-35 opening-season tie against Gahr High.

Lunzer led the rushing attack with 37 yards on 13 carries while senior Blake Butler picked up 33 yards on four carries. Sophomore wide receiver Eli Zoetewey caught four passes for 34 yards while Dean and Sweeney each caught a pair on a combined 43 yards. Sophomore defensive back Leonard Graham had six tackles while senior lineman Tyler Moser, sophomore linebacker Tae Cooley and Butler all added five tackles.

Lunzer has now completed 79 of 118 passes for 980 yards and 15 touchdowns at the midway point of the season, leads the team with 352 rushing yards on 74 carries and has accounted for six of the nine rushing touchdowns the Defenders have scored.

Following Friday’s bye will be its homecoming game against Capistrano Valley Christian High, marking the end of four straight home games. The Defenders have faced C.V.C. only twice in Ironwood League action, winning both times by a combined score of 68-39.

“I think this is kind of the progress we wanted to see as each week we are improving and improving, and we’ve definitely shown that,” said Chambers. “I think we get a week to kind of rest and recuperate as we go into league play, which is what really matters. It’s great to be 3-1-1 right now, but we know that the challenge ahead of us is what matters the most. But I’m proud of the progress we’ve made each and every week. We are getting better as a football team and hopefully, we’re going to start peaking at the right time as we enter league play.”