The562’s coverage of Lakewood Athletics is sponsored by J.P. Crawford, Class of 2013.
Lakewood coach Mario Morales has never been one to offer the viral answer when asked about his team’s expectations entering a new season. His goal each year has remained simple, and it hasn’t changed throughout his more than 30-year coaching career.
“It depends on how you define it, but to me, success this season is these guys understanding the bigger picture,” Morales said. “As I’ve gotten older, the things I care about most are what these guys develop into as men. I love hearing their stories as they grow up, and those are the things you feel good about beyond all the touchdowns and wins. This is a solid foundation for the rest of their lives, and that’s the most important thing.”
That simple coaching style paid dividends in Morales’ first season as Lakewood’s head coach, as the Lancers quietly found themselves competing for a Moore League championship in their regular-season finale against Wilson before ultimately falling short. Now, as new talent steps into bigger roles, Lakewood is hoping to continue that trajectory in a newly shaped Moore League.
“We want these guys to understand that hard work pays off, so when we found ourselves in that situation last year, I think it came to fruition for them,” Morales said. “They understood what I meant by hard work and competing through the end of the season. Against Wilson at the end of the year, not taking care of business hurt a little bit. It’s not a chip on their shoulder, but it’s on their mind, and they’re hungry for it. They understand that, at the end of the day, it’s about working hard.”
In order to find themselves in the hunt again, it’ll take a flurry of new players stepping into leadership roles, starting at the quarterback position. Lakewood will have a new look for the first time in recent years after graduating three-year starter Kade Casillas, who will be succeeded by senior Aidan Kautsky.
Kautsky had played baseball his entire life until trying football as a sophomore, where he enjoyed the change. The senior has been juggling the two sports ever since, but has now made the transition to football, where he’s all in for the season. Kautsky says he’ll consider returning to baseball once the football season ends.
“It’s been difficult, but it just comes with reps and going out there every day and giving it 100% of my effort,” Kautsky said. “The main thing has just been going out and enjoying all the time with my guys and having fun.”
Lakewood will have a lot of experience in its backfield, though, with a tandem of running backs in junior Cedric Lane and senior Thales Nguyen. Lane will be an every-down back and was a primary playmaker for Lakewood on both sides of the ball last year, while Nguyen prides himself on being a hard-headed third-down back who’s also come along nicely as a leader.
“I just want to preserve the standard here at Lakewood,” Nguyen said. “I just want to instill that into the younger guys because we have a lot of them stepping into bigger roles this season, so I’ve just been trying to make sure they have a mindset of playing like a senior since they’re stepping up into that.”
The pair will run behind an offensive line that retains the most talent from last year. Lakewood returns seniors Davian Avila and Garon Harden IV at tackle, along with senior Michael Grace at right guard. Orchestrating it all will be returning center Francisco Sortman, while freshman Joseph Garcia will step up at left guard.
“We’re pretty experienced there, and we need to be physical,” Morales said of his O-line. “If we can do that early on, then we’re going to run the ball efficiently and feel good about it without having to think twice about running it when we have to. As you know, that enables us to do a lot of other things as well, so where our line goes is our offense.”
When things open up in the passing game, Kautsky will look to a handful of reliable targets on the outside, including senior Jayden Moore as the primary pass-catcher. He’ll be joined by sophomore receiver Raymond McCree and junior Terrish Weston Jr., while Joseph Macias will also be a key versatile piece at tight end.
The wildcard on defense will be the Lancers’ secondary, a group comprised primarily of guys who have played together on defense at the junior varsity level, along with a handful of two-way players. Lane has some key experience at corner opposite King Denym Dorris, along with a couple of versatile safeties in Weston Jr., LA Morris and McCree.
“They’re becoming a unit that’s gaining more and more confidence as the days go on. I think that’s going to play a key role for us, and we have a lot of guys who have stepped in over there,” Morales said. “(Weston Jr.) is one of those guys who has really come along as a leader, and they’re all-in. They’re learning, they’re understanding and, most importantly, gaining confidence.”
Once again, most of Lakewood’s experience on defense will be on the line, led by senior defensive ends Marshawn Springer and Garon Harden IV, along with tackles Davian Avila and sophomore Charles Lewis. At linebacker, the Lancers have key seniors Murdoch Langdon Gerber and Macias, along with junior Kainen Palacios.
“On the back end where the secondary is, you can’t do a lot if you don’t have pressure,” Morales said. “We’re going to rely on our down guys to help on the back end. If you want to run some man coverage, we can’t do it if we don’t get pressure. They understand that, and they know it’s their job to generate pressure, whether they get a sack or just a quarterback hurry.”
It’ll be a tougher path to the playoffs this year with only two automatic bids coming from a smaller Moore League, making the non-league schedule longer and even more important. Morales is focused on approaching each game one at a time, as Lakewood faces non-league opponents Corona del Mar, Paramount, Ventura, Mayfair, Torrance and Villa Park.
The Lancers will open up Moore League play with a matchup against Long Beach Poly on Oct. 2.
Projected Starting Lineup:
Offense
QB: Aidan Kautsky (Sr.)
RB: Thales Nguyen (Sr.) / Cedric Lane (Jr.)
WR: Jayden Moore (Sr.) / Raymond McCree (So.) / Terrish Weston Jr. (Jr.)
TE: Joseph Macias (Sr.)
OL: Davian Avila (Sr.) / Joseph Garcia (Fr.) / Francisco Sortman (Sr.) / Michael Grace (Sr.) / Garon Harden IV (Sr.)
Defense:
DE: Marshawn Springer (Sr.) / Garon Harden IV (Sr.)
DT: Davian Avila (Sr.) / Charles Lewis (So.)
LB: Murdoch Langdon Gerber (Sr.) / Joseph Macias (Sr.) / Kainen Palacios (Jr.)
CB: Cedric Lane (Jr.) / King Denym Dorris (Jr.)
S: Terrish Weston Jr. (Jr.) / LA Morris (Jr.) / Raymond McCree (So.)
2026 Lakewood Football Schedule:
8/21 vs. Corona Del Mar
8/28 at Paramount
9/4 vs. Ventura
9/11 at Mayfair
9/18 vs. Torrance
9/25 at Villa Park
10/2 at Long Beach Poly*
10/9 vs. Millikan*
10/16 at Wilson*
10/23 vs. Jordan*
*Denotes Moore League game
