The Washington Rams (0-5) are seeking their first win of the season in their first 4A Black Canyon Region game at Apache Junction (1-4) on Friday.

Washington fell 59-10 to Buckeye (3-3) on the road last week. Despite the loss, coach Tim Mayfield was optimistic moving forward.

“When we looked at our schedule, they were probably the toughest team we’ll play all year,” Mayfield said. “We started to get some things going in the second half, but it was just too little too late.”

Mayfield also emphasized that the season is nowhere near over and the team has remained positive.

“We told (the team) we have three parts of the season. The first part is the non-region games, the second part is our region games, and the third part is the state playoffs,” he said. “They’re in a positive realm because this is a new season now. We’re 0-0. Our first region game is this Friday...and they understood that during those first five games we were going to struggle. Now we need to go 5-0.”

Last season, Washington lost to Apache Junction 38-30 at home. The team allowed 249 yards in the air and another 157 on the ground. This year, the matchup is more even, as sophomore quarterback Gibson Limongello is still developing in his first season as the starter.

As the team prepares for its first region contest, senior center Isaiah Little said the Rams are ready to win.

“We’re going in to get our first win,” he said. “It’s region play. We’ll come out hard; we just need to finish. We have everything. We just need to finish.”

Senior defensive end David Pena said he’s looking forward to the high intensity. “We’ve got what it takes, but we’ve got to give all of it."

Senior safety Gabe Garcia added that while the team is looking to getting a win, it needs to remain focused to do so.

Washington will be without junior cornerback Felix Bedah this week as he recovers from a knee injury suffered against Greenway in Week 3. Mayfield said Bedah will return next week.

Junior running back Dez Matthews may also see little to no action this week. He was injured in last week’s game against Buckeye.

Despite losing two key players, Mayfield said he likes the matchup, as well as the outlook for the rest of the season.

“I like our region,” he said. “I think everyone is about the same competitive level. This gives our kids a chance to be successful and maybe win a Region Championship”