After a 5-0 start to the season, Reedley suffered its first loss of the season last week to Edison of Fresno, 46-0. It doesn’t get any easier this week for the Pirates.
Reedley hosts Bullard, ranked No. 2 in the Central Section by MaxPreps and No. 33 overall in the state. The Knights are 6-0 on the season and are coming off a 42-0 win over Clovis North. Kerr Tauber passed for a pair of touchdowns and also ran for a score to lift the Knights to the victory. Reedley, meanwhile, was unable to stop Edison’s Tevin McDonald, who had three touchdowns in the win.
Bullard is one of just two undefeated teams left in Division I. The other is Buchanan, which is 6-0 and faces Clovis West this week. The Bears whipped Madera last week 54-21 with Lance Orender for 273 yards and three touchdowns and Nigel Simmons scoring four touchdowns. Clovis West is in the midst of a rough season after losing 24-3 to Central of Fresno last week.
* * *
Gavin Andrews, Granite Bay
Photo by Anthony Brunsman
Kingsburg remained unbeaten in Central Sequoia play last week with a 14-0 win over Dinuba. Tyler Bray completed 17-of-33 passes for 274 yards and two touchdowns in the win, one each to Michael Torres and Benton Bray.
Bray’s passing total was his second-best outing of the season, topped only by a 338-yard effort against Washington Union in week two. Bray trails only Tanner Mendonca of Mt. Whitney among the Central Section’s passing leaders with 1,565 yards. He is tied with Mendonca in the touchdown department with 20.
The Vikings continue league play this week with a game in Visalia against Central Valley Christian. Although just 3-3 on the season, the Cavaliers have shown upset potential this year with wins over defending section champions Bakersfield Christian and Chowchilla.
* * *
Mendonca had his best performance of the season in Mt. Whitney’s 41-26 win over Hanford West last week. The 6-foot-4 senior completed 31-of-44 passes for a season-best 424 yards and five touchdowns. Mendonca has thrown for over 400 yards twice this season and was over 300 yards for the second week in a row. Medonca’s favorite receiver, Titus Grayson, leads the section in receptions with 52 while Orender’s top target, Jake East, leads in yardage with 822.
* * *
Taft has won five straight games since losing its season opener to Templeton. The Wildcats crushed Arvin 65-6 last week, but that’s only the second-largest margin of victory for Taft this season. The Wildcats also dumped Avenal 70-0 in the second week of the season.
The Wildcats traditionally have liked to keep the ball on the ground and this year is no different. Cody Shirreffs averages 176 yards per game and has 1,056 yards on the season. He rushed for 141 yards and two touchdowns in last week’s win over Arvin. The Wildcats travel to play a Wasco team that is 5-1 on the season with the only loss coming against Lindsay. The Tigers whipped defending section champion Bakersfield Christian last week, winning 34-6. Quentin Cheatham led the offensive attack for Wasco with 142 yards and a touchdown.
* * *
Strathmore and Lindsay meet in a key East Sequoia League matchup. The Spartans are 5-1 on the season and are coming off a 28-20 win over Woodlake. Jesse Soria, who had 305 yards and four touchdowns in a 55-7 win over Riverdale two weeks ago, rushed for 142 yards and two scores in the Woodlake victory. Lindsay, meanwhile, fell to 5-2 after last week’s 28-21 loss to Caruthers. The Blue Raiders limited Cardinal running back Jonathan Duarte to just 14 yards in the loss. Duarte had been averaging 127 yards per game.
Sac-Joaquin Section
The Granite Bay Grizzlies lost their first game of the season last week in a thriller against Del Oro, 27-21, and now they face another unbeaten team in the Rocklin Thunder.
The Thunder are averaging 44 points per game and putting up 430 yards per game. Jackson Cummings has been one of the top rushers in the Sac-Joaquin Section this year, rushing for 862 yards and 15 touchdowns. He gained 189 yards last week with two scores in a 28-0 win over Woodcreek. His best outing is a 196-yard, five-touchdown effort against Las Lomas in a 62-35 victory.
Few teams have been able to stop Cummings this year due to the fact that defenses have to worry about Rocklin’s passing game as well. Junior quarterback Jimmy Laughrea has thrown for 1,246 yards and 13 touchdowns, including a 368-yard performance in a 41-36 win over Nevada Union. Granite Bay lost to Del Oro in overtime when Golden Eagle running back Bryce Pratt scored on a 6-yard run.
* * *
Hilmar and Central Catholic meet in a rematch of last year’s Sac-Joaquin Section Division V championship game, which Hilmar won, ending the Raiders’ string of seven straight section championships.
The Yellowjackets enter this year’s contest with the better record at 6-0, including last week’s 31-14 win over Livingston. Quinton McCown leads the Hilmar offense, passing for 885 yards and seven touchdowns. He completed six-of-17 passes last week for 186 yards and two scores in the Livingston win.
Central Catholic is 5-1 with a loss to St. Mary’s of Stockton, which is currently ranked No. 1 in the Sac-Joaquin Section. The Raiders are ranked No. 9 overall in the section while Hilmar is No. 20. Central Catholic bounced back from the loss to the Rams with a 44-0 demolishing of Gustine. Dylan Swartz completed just eight passes in the game (on 14 attempts), but four of them went for touchdowns. He finished with 158 yards through the air.
* * *
Northern Section
The Willows Honkers became the first team in Northern Section history to win 500 games, and it did it in thrilling fashion last week in a 15-14 victory over Live Oak.
Trailing 14-7 with 44 second left, the Honkers forced the Lions to punt. A good return by Zach Hampel put the Honkers 23 yards from the end zone. On first down, quarterback Forrest Johnson threw to Hampel for the score. Willows then went for the two-point conversion, scoring on a pass from Johnson to tight end Forrest Bateman.
Chico could join the Honkers in the 500-win club as soon as this year, but it will take a deep run in the playoffs for the Panthers to reach the benchmark. The Panthers entered the season with 491 all-time wins and are 4-3 this year. Chico has three tough games ahead as it takes on Paradise, Enterprise and Shasta to finish the season. Those three teams are a combined 19-2 overall.
