Central Valley’s junior-varsity football team had to settle for a 21-21 tie with Patterson this past Friday at Ceres High.

The Hawks appeared headed for an upset victory before the Tigers stormed back in the fourth quarter.

“We just couldn’t hang on,” Central Valley head coach Rusty Price said.

The Hawks still had a chance to win the game despite blowing a 14-point lead in final eight minutes.

Central Valley’s final possession ended with an interception at Patterson’s 21-yard line with 14 seconds to play.

“It was a bad play call on my part,” Price said. “We should have run the ball and possibly kicked the game-winning field goal.”

The Hawks moved to 2-5-1 overall and 1-2-1 in the Central California Conference.

Central Valley all-purpose player Amare Padilla rushed for 65 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries.

He also caught two passes for 57 yards and one score.

Hawk backup quarterback Tristan Deleon completed 12 of 21 passes for 184 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.

Deleon replaced starter Marcos Gonzalez, who exited the contest early in the first quarter after re-aggravating a knee injury.

“Triston got tossed right in there and he played great,” Price said. “He took advantage of his opportunity. Everybody is happy for him.”

Agustin Piza made all three of his point-after kicks.

Central Valley racked up more than 300 yards of total offense against Patterson.

“At no point did we think we were going to lose the game,” Price said.