Kennedy couldn't capitalize on their home-field advantage in their season opener. They took a 45-29 bruising from the Hanford Bullpups on Thursday. The match was a 22-22 toss-up at halftime, but the Thunderbirds couldn't quite close it out.
Despite the loss, Kennedy still got an impressive performance from Jamison Membreve, who rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns. The team also got some help courtesy of Javier Valdez, who rushed for 34 yards and a touchdown.
Valdez wasn't the only one working in the rushing yards department: Kennedy was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 294 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 172 rushing yards in 13 consecutive contests dating back to last season.
Hanford had a senior duo take command as Daniel Gomez rushed for 105 yards and a touchdown on only ten carries and Kourdey Glass gained 173 total yards and two touchdowns. Glass' longest reception was for an incredible 73 yards. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Taveon Patterson, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
Kennedy will face off against Buchanan at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. As for Hanford, they will take on Sanger at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
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