Ceres High’s football team has won two of its last three league games.

Central Valley has lost its past three games.

“We’re seeing improvement in the areas we want,” Bulldogs’ head coach Brett Johnson said.

Ceres High climbed to fourth place in the Western Athletic Conference following its 25-14 win against Beyer Friday evening at CUSD Stadium.

The Bulldogs improved to 3-6 overall and 2-4 in league.

Set to retire at the end of the season, Johnson was honored before coaching during his final regular-season home game.

“It was a really special night,” he said.

Ceres High dominated time of possession versus Beyer thanks to its rushing attack.

Offensive linemen Elijah Herrera (center), Isaiah German (guard), Samuel Nieto (guard), Jelo Estrada (tackle) and Malachi Johnson (tackle) provided the blocking as the Bulldogs totaled 238 yards on 39 carries.

“It was very satisfying knowing they couldn’t stop us,” Estrada said. 

“Our line coach (Cameron Moscozo) does a really good job with those kids every week,” Brett Johnson added.

Nathaniel St. Macias ran for 132 yards while filling at quarterback for Parker Borges.

Borges was sidelined for precautionary reasons according to coach Johnson. Borges took a hard hit to his helmet the previous week.

“He (St. Macias) did exactly what was asked of him,” Brett Johnson said. “Playing quarterback is not an easy spot. He put us in a position to win. I’m proud of everybody and the way we handled the situation.”

Ceres High’s Alex Alvarez gained 78 yards and scored two touchdowns on 15 carries.

Leo Ayala kicked a 29-yard field goal and converted both of his PATs.

Bulldog Abijah Bratton racked up a team-high 14 tackles on defense.

Adrian Carrillo had six tackles, one interception and three pass deflections.

Caelen Eskridge, Malachi German and David Rodriguez all had six tackles.

“Besides two big plays, we shut them down,” coach Johnson said. 

Central Valley dropped to fourth place in the WAC after losing 42-7 at first-place Lathrop on Friday.

“That’s the best team we’ve played this season,” Hawks’ lineman William Montez said. 

The Hawks fell to 3-6 overall and 2-4 in the conference standings.

Central Valley mustered just 147 yards of offense with three turnovers against Lathrop.

The Hawks totaled 83 yards on 25 carries.

Matthew Ontiveroz ran for 39 yards and one touchdown on four carries.

Junior Gomez completed 6 of 9 passes for 51 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

Erick Mendoza caught three passes for 34 yards.

Josiah Arementa was 1-for-1 on point-after kicks.

The Hawks trailed 7-0 with 4:33 remaining in the first quarter. Central Valley was outscored 35-7 the rest of the way.

Ontiveroz prevented the shutout with an 8-yard touchdown run on the game’s final play.

Manteca Bulletin correspondent Dave Campbell contributed to this report.