Roundup: Modesto’s McCabe, stout defense guide Panthers; Manteca too much for Downey
Shaking some early nerves, the Modesto High football team cruised to a season-opening victory on Friday night.
Quarterback Eli McCabe threw five touchdown passes and the defense stifled the Johansen running game in a 39-12 win over the Vikings at Downey High.
“We started a little slow,” Modesto coach Dylan Miller said. “We hadn’t played with fans in attendance. So, we had nerves early on. There were a lot of Modesto High kids in the crowd, so we were really proud of that. We finally found our footing.”
McCabe connected on scoring passes twice each with Julian Gonzalez and Hester Blom and once with Andrew Tabalno.
On defense, Ben Leota, Brandon Darden and Jesse Pulido were stout up front as the Panthers built a 25-6 lead at halftime.
“We fought through a lot last year,” Miller said. “This year, we had air quality issues and other concerns. It was good to see them fight. Johansen played a good game and fought hard throughout.
“Hopefully, this is something we can maintain the rest of the year.”
Gregori 18, Buhach Colony 15 – Quarterback Cruz Marines completed 10 of 16 passes for 168 yards and a touchdown and ran for 69 yards and a touchdown to lead the Jaguars to victory over the host Thunder. The defense came up with three interceptions.
Manteca 46, Downey 14 – The Knights saw their recent two-game winning streak over the Buffaloes end in convincing fashion in Manteca. Downey had defeated Manteca 44-42 in 2018 and 54-48 in 2019 before Friday’s dominating performance by the Buffaloes, who are ranked No. 14 in the Sac-Joaquin Section by MaxPreps. Manteca scored on its first four possessions and led 40-0 midway through the second quarter.
Central Valley 33, Pitman 14 – The Pride took a 13-10 lead early in the third quarter but it was all Central Valley after that in the game played at Turlock High. Alexis Becerra returned an interception for a touchdown to give the Hawks a 26-14 lead with 5:08 left in the game. Elijah Deleon and Felix Arellano combined for 120 yards rushing and two touchdowns for Central Valley.
Ceres 49, West 0 – Running back Tarrell Lee-Gill had 10 carries for 148 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Bulldogs to a road victory in Tracy.
Oakdale 37, Sonora 6 – It was a tough night at the Corral for the Wildcats, who trailed 34-0 at halftime. Jackson Holt had three TD passes to guide Oakdale.
Hilmar 27, Patterson 20 – The visiting Yellowjackets took a 27-7 lead late in the third quarter and held off the Tigers to get the win.
Waterford 44, Stone Ridge Christian 14 – Starting quarterback Aaron Adams left the game in the third quarter with an injury but the Wildcats extended their eight-point lead and got the home victory. Caleb Hilton and Ryan Hilton each had fourth-quarter touchdowns for Waterford.
Escalon 55, Linden 30 – Logan Anderson rushed for 160 yards and two touchdowns on just nine carries and quarterback Donovan Rosevink went 9-for-10 for 163 yards and two touchdowns in the Cougars’ victory over visiting Linden. Rosevink’s favorite target was Owen Nash, who had eight catches for 137 yards and two touchdowns.
East Union 41, Ripon 26 – Mike Kuhnlenz won his first game as head coach of the Lancers with the victory in Ripon. He replaced Willie Herrera, who stepped down after 10 years as head coach.
Hughson 49, Sierra 0 – The Huskies rolled to their sixth straight victory dating back to last spring in a home victory over the Manteca school. It was the second straight win for Hughson over a Valley Oak League team. The Huskies ended last season with a win over Kimball.
Ripon Christian 21, Galt 12 – Micah De Jong scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to lead the visiting Knights to the season-opening victory.
Orestimba 12, Rio Vista 6 – The Warriors opened the season with an overtime victory at Rio Vista.
This story was originally published August 21, 2021 at 12:42 AM.
