Despite dealing with a light outage that led to a more than hour delay until kickoff, Hughson High football team remained poised and it showed on the field on Friday.
With the help of quarterback Hudson Baldwin’s two touchdown passes and an exceptional outing from its front seven, Hughson cruised past Orestimba High, 38-13.
The Huskies improved to 7-2 (3-2) overall and moved to third place in the Trans-Valley League standings.
Hughson continues its success in matchups against Orestimba, winning six straight games against the Warriors dating back to April 2021.
While the Huskies’ offense found success, it was the defense that stood out. From the front seven pressuring Orestimba’s quarterback Giovanni Gudino to preventing any scoring opportunity, Hughson made its presence known.
Hughson head coach Shaun King said his players take pride in performing well on that side of the ball and that it’s the team’s “strong point” this season.
“That’s what we’ve been working on all year and tonight, the defense came out and (played),” he said.
Hughson got on the board in less than two minutes after wide receiver Lawson Aviles rushed for a total of 80 yards including a touchdown on the opening drive to lead 7-0.
After pushing the Warriors’ to its 10-yard line, Hughson’s defense got a stop. Offensive linebacker Titus Beers blocked Orestimba’s punt return and defensive tackle Cole Prouty recovered the ball and went into the endzone for a touchdown to extend the Huskies’ lead, 14-0.
With Hughson’s defense clicking, Orestimba was offensively stagnant as the Warriors couldn’t drive towards field goal range, an issue that was persistent during the team’s loss to Hilmar High as last week.
For the Huskies, it was the exact opposite as its offense found ways to record multiple down conversions. After leading Hughson past Orestimba’s 10-yard line, Baldwin threw a touchdown pass to tight end Bryce McDaniel to conclude the opening quarter with a 21-0 lead.
It remained more or less the same in the second period for Hughson as the team continued its momentum from both sides of the ball.
After driving down the field to Orestimba’s 35-yard line, Baldwin completed his second touchdown pass of the evening following a catch from wide receiver Lincoln Sousa to lead 28-0.
With more than four minutes left in the half, kicker Noe Pacheco successfully converted a 30-yard field goal attempt to give the Huskies a 31-0 lead going into halftime.
After failing to score in the first 24 minutes, Orestimba finally got on the board. Running back Michael Maier ran 60 yards down the field for the Warriors’ first touchdown since Sept.19.
Hughson’s running back Eli Wilbanks responded with a touchdown of his own after 80 yards to Orestimba’s endzone to extend the Huskies’ lead back to 31 points, 38-7.
Halfway through the third quarter, Gage Hartgrove went down with an injury following a collision with another player. King said he suffered a dislocated kneecap.
Maier ran 30 yards for the final touchdown of the evening as Hughson held on to its lead to win, 38-13.
Hughson will host Hilmar High in its final regular season game next Friday. Kickoff begins at 7 p.m. The Huskies ended an eight-game skid against the Yellowjackets last season with a 41-24 win.
King emphasized the importance of preparing for next Friday’s matchup as it could have possible TVL and postseason implications.
“It’s a big one, not just for the TVL, but for playoff seeding,” he said. “We’re in Division IV (and) they’re in Division V, and we’re both looking to get the highest seed we can.”
