Roundup: RC nears perfection; Central starts slow, but rolls; Davis close to .500

Ripon Christian closed in on a perfect season with ease on Friday night.

Five Knights scored touchdowns as RC (9-0, 6-0 SL) rolled to a 41-0 victory over host Le Grand (3-6, 2-4).

How dominant is Ripon Christian? It’s outscored its opponents 381-58 and has limited seven of its opponents to seven or fewer points. Up next? Winless Delhi.

Next week — along with Modesto Christian (9-0), Pitman (9-0) and Merced (9-0) — it will attempt to close out the regular season a perfect 10-0.

Michael Kamps had two touchdown runs, Wyatt Van Vliet had a 30-yard TD on a fumble recovery and Jacob Van Groningen threw a touchdown pass and caught one as the Knights were never threatened.

Valley Oak League

Central Catholic 70, Kimball 19: Coming off a bye week, the Raiders (8-1, 5-0 VOL) showed some rust early against the Jaguars (3-7, 1-5).

Kimball took a 19-7 first-quarter lead before Central Catholic turned on the switch, scoring the game’s final 63 points.

“They’re kids,” Central Catholic coach Roger Canepa. “They take a week off and it’s hard to get going.”

Once they did, the Raiders could not be stopped.

Kyle Jacklich scored on runs of 23, 32 and 66 yards and Minaya Olivo had TD runs of 29 and 38.

Quarterback Dalton Durossette, who announced earlier this week that he was attending Santa Clara University on a baseball scholarship, threw a 95-yard TD strike to Sithri Price.

Dawaiian McNeely, Central Catholic’s top running back, did not play on offense, sticking only to defense, Canepa said.

Central Catholic can win the outright VOL title next week by beating Oakdale at The Corral. Last year, Oakdale beat Central Catholic in a thrilling game at Modesto to win the VOL crown.

“They’re a great football team,” Canepa said of Oakdale. “But, we’re in a good spot and right where we need to be — unbeaten in league.”

Manteca 50, Sierra 7: The host Buffaloes (6-3, 4-1) kept their hopes alive for a VOL co-championship by rolling past the Timberwolves (2-3, 4-5). Manteca can get in a three way tie at 5-2 with Central Catholic and Oakdale if it beats East Union on Friday, and Oakdale defeats Central Catholic.

Western Athletic Conference

Davis 67, Johansen 25: The Spartans (4-5, 3-3 WAC) moved a step closer to its first .500 season since 2014 with a big victory over the Vikings (2-7, 1-5) at Gregori High.

It was the third straight victory for the Spartans and fourth straight in which they’ve scored 40 or more points.

Next week, they conclude the season at Ceres (1-8, 1-5). In that 2014 season, Davis started the season 4-0 before starting Modesto Metro Conference play.

Pacheco 56, Beyer 23: The host Panthers (8-1, 6-0) moved a step closer to an outright WAC title by rolling past the Patriots (0-9, 0-6). Pacheco can win the title by beating crosstown rival Los Banos on Friday. Beyer can avoid a winless season with a victory over Johansen in its regular-season finale.

Los Banos 42, Lathrop 7: The host Tigers (5-1, 6-3) kept their WAC title hopes alive with the victory over the Spartans ((3-6, 3-3). On Friday, Los Banos hosts crosstown rival and first-place Pacheco.

Trans-Valley League

Ripon 56, Hughson 15: The host Indians (8-1, 4-1 TVL) rebounded from their first loss of the season by trouncing the Huskies (5-4, 2-3). They play for the TVL title next week at unbeaten Modesto Christian (9-0, 5-0), which had a bye this week.

Hilmar 56, Riverbank 6: The visiting Yellowjckets (7-2, 3-2) rebounded from a tough loss last week with an easy victory over the Bruins (2-8, 0-6), who finished their season. Hilmar hosts Livingston Friday in a tuneup for the playoffs.

Escalon 42, Livingston 0: The host Cougars (7-2, 3-2) won their third straight game with an easy victory over the Wolves. Escalon concludes the regular season at Hughson.

Central California Conference

Merced 60, at Atwater 19: The unbeaten Bears (5-0, 9-0), The Bee’s No. 2 large-school team, clinched at least a share of the CCC title with a victory over the host Falcons (5-4, 2-3). The Bears host Golden Valley next week in the annual Mayor’s Cup game.

Central Valley 23, El Capitan 16: The host Hawks (2-8, 1-5 CCC) beat the winless Gauchos (0-9, 0-4) to close out their season on Senior Night in Ceres.

Buhach Colony 26, Golden Valley 21: The Thunder (7-2, 4-1) kept its hopes of a CCC co-title alive with a victory over the Cougars (6-3, 3-2). A victory next week by Buhach Colony against Atwater and a Golden Valley upset of Merced would leave the Thunder and Bears tied atop the league.

Southern League

Gustine 24, Waterford 14: The visiting Wildcats (6-3, 3-3 SL) lost its second straight game after winning three in a row, falling to the Reds (5-4, 3-3).

Denair 28, Mariposa 7: The Coyotes (8-1, 5-1) clinched second place in the league with the victory over the Grizzlies (2-7, 1-5).

Orestimba 38, Delhi 7: The visiting Warriors (6-3, 4-2 SL) led 21-0 at halftime and remained in a tie for third place by easily handling the Hawks (0-9, 0-6). Orestimba hosts Gustine next week in The Battle for the Chief, a rivalry that began in 1946.

Mother Lode League

Sonora 21, Calaveras 7: The visiting Wildcats (5-4, 4-0 MLL) clinched at least a share of the Mother Lode League title by beating the Cardinal (5-4, 3-1) in a matchup between the top two teams in the MLL. A victory next week against Summerville would secure the outright crown for Sonora, which held Calaveras scoreless in the second half.

Entering the game, Sonora was ranked No. 7 in the calpreps.com rankings, two spots behind the Cardinal.

Sonora’s Jake Gookin had a touchdown pass and a 24-yard TD run in the second quarter that turned out to be the final score of the game.

Central California Athletic Alliance

Big Valley Christian 42, Brookside Christian 18: In a battle of two teams unbeaten in the CCAA, the Lions (4-0, 7-1), led by 343 yards rushing from Javyn Drobnick, clinched at least a share of the title with a victory over the host Knights (5-3, 3-1). Big Valley concludes the regular season next week Sierra Ridge/ROP.

Drobnick now has a single-season school record of 1,891 yards — virtually locking up the Stanislaus District rushing title — and 22 touchdowns on the season.

This story was originally published October 19, 2018 at 11:20 PM.