Roundup: Oakdale beats Escalon in a thriller; Central Catholic and Gregori both win
The Escalon and Oakdale High football programs played a thriller at the Corral on Friday as the Mustangs fought a late Cougars comeback to win, 38-35.
“It was great to be back on the field after 15 months,” Mustangs junior quarterback Jackson Holt said. “It was a great game between two physical teams.”
Mustangs (1-0) junior defensive back Titan Ginger had a 92-yard interception return for a touchdown to give Oakdale a 38-20 lead entering the fourth quarter.
However, behind senior quarterback Ty Harris and senior running back Luke Anderson, the Cougars (0-1) scored 15 unanswered points but had their final drive stall around midfield with a little over a minute left in the game.
“What a game,” Cougars coach Andrew Beam said via text late Friday night. “Loved the competition and loved how our boys fought and persevered.”
Anderson had 16 carries for 92 yards and three touchdowns and Harris had 283 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Holt finished with 263 passing yards and one touchdown.
“One thing I would say is these two towns deserve to see this game in person and maybe we need to run it back again next year,” Beam said.
Hilmar 35, Atwater 19: The season may only be five games, but it offers quite a challenge for Hilmar High.
With Merced County schools making up the Central California Conference, the Yellowjackets find themselves matched up against larger schools this season like Merced, Buhach Colony and Atwater.
Hilmar proved it was up to the challenge by opening the season with a win over Atwater at McSweeney Field.
“I’m excited for this,” said Hilmar coach Frank Marques. “It’s an honor to play these teams because I have so much respect for them. To pull off a win against a team like Atwater is huge for our program.”
Marques believes it’s the first time Hilmar and Atwater have ever played each other.
The Yellowjackets (1-0) took advantage of the Falcons’ turnovers, including two pick-sixes. Owen Vega returned an interception for a score to give Hilmar a 7-0 lead in the first half.
The second interception returned for a touchdown came from Lane Cardoso in the third quarter that extended the Yellowjackets’ lead to 28-7.
Hilmar quarterback Seth Miguel threw three touchdowns, including two to sophomore Cannon Ireland.
The Yellowjackets played without star senior Cole Bailey, who found out just hours before the game that he had to sit out after contact tracing was done after a classmate had tested positive for COVID-19.
Marques says it felt good to be playing football again after the long absence.
“It did,” he said. “McSweeney Field felt dead with just the parents there. It was odd not having the noise we’re used to having at games. But even the official told us it was hard to believe it was the first game the way both teams got after it.”
Gregori 54, Modesto 20: Senior running back Isaac Herman had a 60-yard touchdown for the Jaguars (1-0) in their win over the Panthers (0-1).
Enochs 30, Pitman 24: The Eagles (1-0) beat the Pride (0-1) in a highly-contested affair. It’s the third straight year Enochs started the year with a win.
Central Catholic 28, Bellarmine 21: The Raiders (1-0) rebounded from a 21-0 deficit to beat Bellarmine (0-1). The victory was Roger Canepa’s 250th career win. Bellarmine fumbled near midfield with under a minute left in the game to give the Raiders the win.
Central Valley 42, Johansen 6: Senior Isaiah Hidalgo had four total touchdowns (three rushing and one passing) for the Hawks (1-0) in their win over the Vikings (0-1).
Ceres 34, Davis 32 : The Bulldogs (1-0) beat the Spartans (0-1) in a Western Athletic Conference showdown.
Orestimba 51, Denair 6: Juniors JD Horton, Lazs King, and Jayden Vargas each had two touchdowns in the Warriors (1-0) win over the Coyotes (0-1).
Hughson 38, Waterford 12: The Huskies (1-0) scored in every quarter, including 16 points in the fourth in their win over the Wildcats (0-1).
Sonora 33, Gustine 7: The Wildcats (1-0) opened the season with a win over Gustine (0-1).
Summerville 19, Big Valley Christian 16: Seniors Andrew Contreras and Josh Petero each had rushing touchdowns in the loss for the Lions (0-1) on Thursday.
East Union 37, Ripon 6: The Lancers (1-0) scored 32 points in the second half in their victory over the Indians (0-1) on Thursday.
Ripon senior quarterback Aaron Wood had a 14-yard touchdown pass to junior Bronson Burrow in the second quarter but the offense struggled throughout the night.
“We don’t have 50 guys on the sideline and we ran out of gas and they came out and punched us in the mouth in the second half and we didn’t respond very well,” Indians coach Chris Musseman said in an interview with the Manteca Bulletin. “I didn’t prepare them well and we didn’t play well and that’s on me.”
This story was originally published March 20, 2021 at 12:43 AM.
