Central Valley's freshman team varsity football team enjoyed a memorable season this fall.
The Hawks posted a 7-2-1 overall record and finished in a three-way tie for first place in the Western Athletic Conference standings (3-1) with Los Banos and Patterson.
"The results are good to have but they don't hang freshman banners in the gym," head coach Scott Barron said. "The most important part is preparing the kids for the higher levels."
Central Valley closed out the 2017 campaign with a 27-6 win over Johansen on Nov. 2 in Modesto.
Amare Padilla, Alex Becerra and Anthony Mondragon all had standout games on offense for the Hawks.
Padilla ran 76 yards and two touchdowns on six carries.
Becerra gained 54 yards and scored one TD on two carries.
Mondragon added 128 yards on 13 carries.
Phoenix Jackson led the way on defense.
Jackson had two interceptions in the opening quarter, one of which he returned for a touchdown.
Central Valley stormed out to a 20-0 lead in the opening eight minutes of the game.
"I put in the backups in the second quarter," Barron said. "Everybody got to play."
Padilla carried the ball 123 times for 1,046 yards and 10 touchdowns on the year.
He also returned a kickoff 75 yards for a touchdown.
"He has great vision, speed and balance," Barron said. "He has a really good work ethic, too."
Beccera totaled 246 yards and four TDs on the ground.
Mondragon had two touchdowns, including one receiving and one rushing.
Jackson, Central Valley's quarterback, passed for 405 yards and three TDs.
He rushed for 82 yards and a pair of scores.
Hawk offensive linemen Miguel Alvarado, Richard Dennison, Noah Avalos, Devin Kemp, Jacob Gomez and Julian Gomez provided the blocking.
"We didn't have just one weapon," Barron said.
Central Valley compiled a 4-1-1 record against non-conference opponents.
The Hawks collected wins against Johansen, Grace Davis (27-0), Enochs (20-8) and West (21-0).
Central Valley and Sierra battled a tie (14-14).
The Hawks lost by one point (15-14) to Atwater.
Central Valley won three of its four league games.
The Hawks topped Patterson (29-28), Pacheco (15-14) and Livingston (13-0).
Central Valley was beaten by Los Banos (44-20).
Led by linebacker Konnor Bailey, free safety Jaeden Merchant, defensive end Jorge Avila and cornerback Nate Diaz, the Hawks allowed just 129 points in 10 games.
Bailey filled the stat sheet with 91 tackles, three forced fumbles, two sacks and one blocked punt.
Merchant had 55 tackles, four pass deflections and two interceptions.
Avila had 47 tackles.
Diaz had 43 tackles and three interceptions.
"Having talent definitely makes a coach look better," Barron said. "Overall, it was a fun group. The big key to our success was the buy-in. Everybody did their job."
YOUTH FOOTBALL
The Ceres Seahawks varsity youth football team fell one win shy of advancing to the Cen-Cal Super Bowl.
The second-seeded Oakdale Stampede ended the top-seeded Seahawks' run at perfection and exacted revenge with a 16-6 victory in the Cen-Cal AFC title game Saturday night at Ceres High.
The Stampede snapped the Seahawks' 11-game unbeaten streak.
"I'm not taking anything away from Oakdale," Ceres head coach Joe Borba said. "They definitely earned it."
Oakdale, which lost 24-14 to Ceres earlier this year, improved its overall record to 11-1.
Ceres dropped to 11-1. The Seahawks placed first in the AFC regular-season standings with a 6-0 mark.
"Obviously, it's disappointing," Borba said. "We didn't reach the Super Bowl. But I'm not disappointed in them. I'm disappointed with the outcome."
Ceres' Julian Lopez carried the ball eight times for 76 yards and one touchdown against Oakdale.
Anthony Lopez ran for 87 yards on 14 attempts.
Isaiah Epps collected a team-high seven tackles on defense for the Seahawks.
Julian Lopez and Anthony Lopez both made six tackles.
Ruben Valenzuela and Anthony Martinez each tallied five tackles.
Ceres led 6-0 at intermission.
Julian Lopez scored on an 8-yard run in the first quarter.
The Stampede shut out the Seahawks 16-0 during the second half.
Oakdale tallied TDs and added a pair of two-point conversions in each of the final two quarters.
"They were more physical this game," Borba said.
The Seahawks will battle the Turlock Pride in the Cen-Cal third-place game this Saturday at Turlock High School
Kickoff slated for 12 p.m.
"I'm proud of the team," Borba said. "They had a great run."
