Modesto's Downey too explosive for Central Valley

MODESTO -- Aaron Zwahlen filled the sky above Chuck Hughes Stadium with footballs and Juan Vaa-Ayala turned big blocks into big gains, moving almost effortlessly through Central Valley’s front seven.

However, the most telling stat from Downey’s 49-21 victory on Friday night belonged not to a boy in blue, but the coaches in Hawk green and white.

Just four plays into the second quarter, with more than 11 minutes left in the half, the Hawks were out of timeouts — and on the verge of tapping out.

It was all head coach Tim Garcia could do to slow down the rapid-fire Knights, who shook off last week’s six-turnover nightmare against Turlock with a near flawless performance in its home opener.

“We knew they had seven guys going (both ways) on offense and defense,” Zwahlen said, “so we wanted to run them as fast and as much as we could. We picked up the tempo and came out prepared.”

Zwahlen was 12-of-23 for 191 yards and three touchdowns — two passing and one rushing — before grabbing a seat on the bench early in the fourth quarter. Vaa-Ayala also made the most of limited duty, rushing for 117 yards on just 13 carries and two touchdowns of his own.

Now 1-1, Downey will look to complete the Ceres sweep next Friday at Ceres High. The Hawks were impressed. In the south end zone, Garcia tipped his cap to a home sideline washed in blue.

“We didn’t deserve to win,” Garcia said to a sea of long faces. “They played better than us tonight.”

In a game highlighted by its offensive fireworks, Downey’s defense did its part. The starting unit limited an explosive CV attack to just seven points and the team forced two turnovers, turning both fumbles into touchdowns.

Central Valley (1-1) had success moving the ball between the 30-yard lines with Ja’Quan Gardner (17 carries, 86 yards, TD) and Gregory Tripp (10 catches, 124 yards, 2 TDs), but stutterered near the red zone in the first half.

Three times their drives stalled in scoring position, including once at the Knights’ 9 with the Hawks trailing 7-0. Instead of trotting out All-District Soccer Player Daniel Ochoa, the team’s kicker and a sure-bet for three points, Garcia chose to go for it.

Even then, Central Valley knew it would need touchdowns — not field goals — to keep pace with the Knights. Downey scored on its first six possessions and Trevor Johnson returned the opening kickoff of the second half 75 yards, building a 49-7 lead before the sun had even set.

Richard Lopez (5 catches, 88 yards) and Conner Purnell (5 catches, 51 yards) caught first-half touchdown passes, while John Kriefels capped Downey’s scoring with a 1-yard run.