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JV Hawks post shutout
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Central Valley's and Ceres High's junior-varsity football teams were locked in a defensive battle during the opening half of last week's Western Athletic Conference finale.

Ahead 7-0, the Hawks broke the game open with four touchdowns.

Central Valley emerged with a 33-0 win Friday night at Bulldog Stadium.

"I have a lot of friends on that team," said Hawks all-purpose standout Angelo Bermudez, who was quick to point out that his older brother (Domingo) suited up for the JV Bulldogs this season. "I never wish bad upon them. They hung with us, but we tightened its up at the end. We made some adjustments. Everyone had a great game in the second half."

The Hawks finished 7-3 overall and 4-2 in the Western Athletic Conference.

The Bulldogs were 1-9 and 1-5.

Central Valley held the ball for 9 minutes, 23 seconds during its first possession of the game. The Hawks converted several fourth downs while marching 78 yards on 16 plays. Quarterback Milton Uti capped the drive with a 5-yard TD run on a play-action fake at the 7:59 mark of the second quarter.

The Bulldogs could have trailed by more than one touchdown at intermission. Ceres High's defense made a goal-line stop as time expired. Uti was tackled at the Bulldogs' 1-yard line.

"It gave us more motivation to come out harder in the second half," Angelo Bermudez said. "We had to win. There was no other option. The shutout was icing on the game."

Central Valley pulled away in the second half thanks in large part to its determined defensive unit, which allowed just 100 points in 10 games this year.

Angelo sprinted 46 yards for a touchdown and Benjamin Anitelea added a 10-yard rushing TD in the third quarter.

Angelo scored after Central Valley's defense forced an incomplete pass on fourth-and-4 in Hawk territory. Defensive back Marcus Clark helped set up Anitelea's score when he intercepted a Bulldog pass.

Raul Godinez scored on a 41-yard run and Samath Prak returned an interception 20 yards for a TD in the final period. Godinez's TD came after Central Valley got the ball back following a turnover on downs by Ceres High.

The Bulldogs challenged the Hawks for two-plus quarters.

Central Valley remained patient and eventually took control. "Everything's out the window when it's a rivalry game," Angelo said. "Anything can happen. They're not a weak team."