The mood was somber as Ceres High varsity football head coach Matt Chachere offered words of encouragement to his team. 

For the second week in a row, the Bulldogs showed vast improvement but were dealt another loss.

Ceres High dropped to 0-7 overall and 0-4 in the Western Athletic Conference following Friday night’s 31-21 setback versus visiting Pacheco. 

The Panthers improved to 3-4 and 2-2.

“I’m emotional because it’s a game we could have won,” sophomore receiver/safety Verlis Smith said. 

The Bulldogs had a season-high 289 yards of total offense against the Panthers.

Ceres High sophomore quarterback Bryce Piatt passed for 148 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. 

All-purpose player Amare Padilla totaled 73 yards and one TD on three receptions.

He rushed for 44 yards on 10 carries.

Padilla completed 3 of 3 passes for 39 yards.

Smith hauled in five passes for 62 yards and one TD.

Montrell Brock gained 52 yards and scored one touchdown on four carries.

Ceres High trailed by just two points, 23-14, at intermission.

Piatt and Padilla combined for a 60-yard scoring play and Block raced 41 yards for a TD during the second quarter.

Piatt tossed a 15-yard TD pass to Smith to bring the Bulldogs within two points, 23-21, in the third quarter.

Pacheco put the game out of reach after the two teams traded punts in the fourth quarter.

Dominic Gomez scampered 40 yards for a touchdown and Jaikob Salacup added the 2-point conversion run to make it a 10-point contest with 1:33 left in regulation.

“We played a great game,” Smith said. “We almost had it. We have a young team. We’re going to keep growing and competing.”

Ceres High will play at Los Banos (3-4, 3-1) on Friday at 7 p.m.

“These last three games, it’s all about getting better,” Smith said. “We’re going to compete and have fun.”

Tigers 40, Hawks 21

Central Valley’s varsity football team limited Patterson to just a pair of field goals in the opening half of last week’s Central California Conference matchup.

Ahead 7-6, the Hawks mustered just two touchdowns and allowed 34 points the rest of the game on their way to losing 40-21 to the Tigers Friday night at Patterson Community Stadium.

“It was a hard-fought game until the end of the third quarter,” Central Valley head coach Scott Edwards said. “The momentum slipped away. We made some mistakes on both sides of the ball.”

The Hawks dropped to 3-5 overall and 1-3 in the CCC standings.

The Tigers improved to 5-3 and 2-2.

“Every week is a huge challenge,” Edwards said. “Eventually, we’ll get over the hump.”

Central Valley quarterback Andrew Hernandez had two touchdowns and no interceptions versus Patterson, finishing 16 of 19 for 158 yards.

“His improvement from last year has been tremendous,” Edwards said. “He understands our offense inside out. He’s our field general out there. He’s respected by his peers in a major way.”

Chris Simental had 55 yards and one TD on four catches.

Erick Martinez-Stucchi added 22 yards and one touchdown on two receptions.

Dylan Kong caught four passes for 48 yards.

Isaiah Hidalgo carried the ball 21 times for 103 yards and one TD. He also grabbed four passes for 33 yards.

Central Valley held a slim 7-6 lead at the break.

Hidalgo’s 1-yard touchdown run and Alexys Jimenez’s point-after kick put the Hawks ahead by one point with 2:53 to play in the first half.

Hernandez tossed a 9-yard TD pass to Martinez-Stucchi and Jimenez added the PAT to increase Central Valley’s lead to 14-6 at the 9:50 mark of the third quarter.

Central Valley didn’t do much on offense the rest of the way, excluding Simental’s 25-yard TD reception in the fourth quarter. Patterson exploded for 34 points.

“I wasn’t expecting that,” Hidalgo said while talking about Patterson’s second-half dominance. “It was a close game in the first half. Patterson is beatable. They capitalized on our mistakes. We failed to execute at the end.”

“You have to play your best when you’re playing the better teams on your schedule,” Edwards said. 

The Hawks could sneak into the playoffs if they close out the regular season with back-to-back wins.

“There’s a chance based on our strength of schedule,” Edwards said. 

Central Valley will face the Buhach Colony (7-0, 3-0) this Friday at CUSD Stadium.

Kickoff slated for 7 p.m.