Ceres High’s football team evened its overall record at 1-1 last week.
The shorthanded Bulldogs earned a hard-fought 28-22 road victory while battling the McNair Eagles on Sept. 5 in Stockton.
Eight Ceres High players missed the non-league game for various reasons.
“You can’t worry about what you don’t have,” head coach Brett Johnson said. “You focus on what you do have. The kids that got a chance to shine competed well.”
The Bulldogs generated 290 yards of offense against the 1-2 Eagles.
Linemen Elijah Herrera, Samuel Nieto, Mauricio Leon, Angelo Estrada and Malachi Johnson paved the way as Ceres High’s rushing attack totaled 175 yards and three touchdowns on 35 carries.
“That’s the best thing in the world,” coach Johnson said. “When you keep rushing the ball and are successful.”
Alex Alvarez ran for 10 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries.
Adrian Huesca gained 72 yards and scored one touchdown on 11 carries.
Caelen Eskridge totaled 66 yards on 11 carries.
Nathaniel St. Macias carried the ball two times for 22 yards.
Quarterback Parker Borges completed 10 of 20 passes for 115 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.
Eric De Lozada caught six passes for 92 yards.
St. Macias grabbed two passes for 10 yards.
David Rodriguez added nine yards on one catch.
Ceres High had four takeaways on defense.
Dakota Pickett tallied seven tackles.
Eskridge registered five tackles and returned an interception 32 yards for a touchdown.
Rodriguez had four tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery.
Aiden Bowen had three tackles, one sack and one interception while filling in for defensive end Joseluis Arreola, who was sidelined with a collarbone injury.
“He really rose to the occasion,” Brett Johnson said.
St. Macias had three tackles and one interception.
Ceres High outscored McNair 20-14 in the second half, including 13-8 in the fourth quarter.
Ahead by just one point, Eskridge’s 32-yard interception return touchdown put the Bulldogs 21-14 early in the final period.
“He dropped into the zone and read it (the pass),” Brett Johnson said. “It gave us some momentum.”
Alvarez’s 3-yard rushing touchdown and Rodriguez’s final point-after kick extended Ceres High’s lead to 28-14 with two minutes to play.
McNair stunned Ceres High by cutting the deficit to 28-22 one minute later.
The Bulldogs recovered the Eagles’ ensuing onside-kick attempt.
Huesca secured the victory when he rushed for a 10-yard run and a first down.
Coach Johnson had Borges kneel down two straight times to end the game.
“The second half, we settled down,” Brett Johnson. “We executed a little bit better on offense. We were able to finish drives. There were a lot of positives.”
Ceres High and McNair battled to an 8-8 tie in the opening half.
Huesca scored on a 15-yard run in the second quarter.
“The kids showed resiliency,” coach Johnson said. “They got down and came back. They kept battling and created opportunities.
Ceres High will face Buhach Colony (1-2) on the road this Friday in Atwater.
Idle last week, Central Valley (0-2) will play host to Modesto High (2-1) at Ceres High School.
Both games are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
“You can never complain when you win,” Brett Johnson said. “We still got work to do.”
FLAG FOOTBALL
Ceres High’s and Central Valley girls flag football teams posted identical 4-4 records during the preseason.
The Bulldogs closed out the non-conference portion of their schedule with a 34-13 road win against the 2024 Sac-Joaquin Section Division-IV champion/previously-unbeaten Hughson Huskies on Sept. 2.
“We lost (25-24) to them last year,” Ceres High head coach Curtis Hulstine said. “We didn’t know how it (the rematch) was going to go. This game shows what this team is capable of. It wasn’t about Hughson. It was about us.”
Bulldog quarterback Presley Vierra threw four touchdown passes.
Lilly Staggs had four touchdowns, including three receiving and one rushing.
Daisy Leon added one receiving TD.
Mariah Renteria and Jayden Garcia both accounted for one extra point.
Ceres High led from start to finish against Hughson.
“The girls played their best game of the year,” Hulstine said. “Everything clicked on both sides of the ball.”
Central Valley’s girls flag football team closed out its preseason schedule last week.
The Hawks improved to 4-4 on the year after winning two of their three games on the road.
“It was good to see everybody executing what we’ve been working on,” head coach Tony Cordova said.
Central Valley topped Modesto High 20-8 on Sept. 2 at Johansen High School.
“We pretty much dominated the game,” Cordova said.
Visiting Central Valley shut out defending Sac-Joaquin Section Division-IV champion Hughson 14-0 on Sept. 3.
The Hawks avenged an 18-14 loss from the 2024 season.
Central Valley limited Hughson to 105 yards of total offense during last week’s matchup.
“Our defense was solid,” Cordova said. “They really couldn’t do anything against us.”
Central Valley’s comeback attempt fell short in losing 22-14 to host Mariposa on Sept. 4.
“We just ran out of time,” Cordova said.
CROSS COUNTRY
Members of Ceres High’s and Central Valley’s cross country programs competed for the first time this season last month.
Sergio Torres led Ceres High’s boys team with a second-place finish in the individual standings at the Screamin’ Scott Showdown on Aug. 29 at Ceres River Bluff Regional Park.
He posted a time of 8 minutes, 11 seconds on the 1.5-mile course.
Bulldog teammates Andres Marcial (16th), Nickolas Albiani (17th), Josiah Martinez-Gontiz (23rd) and Anthony Savala Alvarez took 16th (9:01), 17th (9:02), 23rd (9:13) and 25th ( 9:13), respectively.
Central Valley’s boys finished 37th in the team standings at the Oakmont Invitational on Aug. 30 at Johnson Springview Park.
Enoch Reyes paced the Hawks.
He took 165th with a time of 14 minutes, 26 seconds on the 2.5-mile course.
Central Valley teammates Carlos Castaneda (15:06), Jayden Pires (15:13), Frankie Klino (15:46) and Maximiliano Mendoza (16:17) placed 213th, 218th, 246th and 255th, respectively.
