Tustin had won three straight games and Eimesse Essis did his part to make it four on Friday. The Tustin Tillers came out on top against the Western Pioneers by a score of 32-21 thanks in part to Essis, who rushed for 232 yards and three touchdowns while picking up 11.0 yards per carry. His rushing production has been exceptional as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 182 rushing yards.
Essis was just one part of a punishing run game: Tustin was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 314 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 181 rushing yards in six consecutive matchups.
Tustin's defense made their presence known, laying out Chance Thomas. 13 times. Jeremiah Williams led the group effort, picking up four of those sacks all by himself. Jon Ioane also set a new season high mark in total tackles with eight.
Although Western took the loss, they still got scores from Jj Amezcua and Malachi Alatorre.
Tustin pushed their record up to 8-1 with the win, which was their 11th straight on the road dating back to last season. As for Western, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost three of their last four games, which put a noticeable dent in their 4-5 record this season.
Both squads are looking forward to the support of their home crowds in their upcoming games. Tustin will take on Capistrano Valley at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. One thing working in Tustin's favor is that they have posted at least 31 points every time they've taken the field this season. As for Western, they will face off against Trabuco Hills at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday. Western is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 35.6 points per game this season.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
