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Turnovers doom Dawgs in season-opening loss at Ripon
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Ceres High School's varsity football team snapped a 12-game season-opening losing streak with a thrilling 22-15 win over Ripon last year.

The Bulldogs' defense pulled off a goal-line stand in the closing seconds to preserve the victory.

The Indians won the rematch, 28-7, Friday night at Stoueffer Field.

"All the mistakes we made are fixable," Ceres High head coach Bret Durossette said. "We'll get better. We're going to compete. We're not going to quit."

Junior Blake Hurst completed 11 of 26 passes for 107 yards with no touchdowns and interceptions while making his debut at quarterback with the Bulldogs.

"I was pretty nervous the first few plays," he said. "I settled down. I did the best I could. I still have a lot to improve on."

Devon Ruger caught five passes for 40 yards.

James Rice totaled 36 yards on five receptions.

Ceres High's rushing attack tallied 86 yards on 19 attempts.

George Arroyo had 30 yards and one touchdown.

Ripon had over 250 rushing yards.

Josh McCreath gained 93 yards on 19 carries.

Anthony Baciocco ran for 88 yards and one touchdown. He also caught a TD pass from Kyle Wengel.

Wengel totaled 134 yards and two touchdowns while completing 57 percent of his passes.

Jake McCreath (receiving) and Tyler Swortfiguer (rushing) both scored once.

Ceres High proved to be its own worst enemy.

The Bulldogs lost four fumbles, including three in the red zone.

Ripon scored 14 points off turnovers.

Arroyo's 5-yard rushing TD and Ruger's PAT evened the score at 7-all in the second quarter.

The Indians tallied a pair of touchdowns, one rushing and one receiving, just before halftime.

"We could have beat them," Hurst said. "They weren't better than us. We just made some mistakes. It was real competitive until the end."

Zach Naylor, Ceres High's top returning rusher and linebacker, did not play against Ripon. He was sidelined because of health-related issues.

Receiver/defensive back Caden Johnson broke his wrist at practice leading up to the game. He'll be sidelined for six weeks.

Linebacker/running back Ivan Raya suffered a high ankle sprain in the first half. The projected two-way starter contributed on just defense because of the injury.

All-purpose player Nick Welsh was slowed by leg cramps after intermission.

"We would have done better if we had everyone," Hurst said.

Ceres High struggled to a 1-9 record this past season.

The Bulldogs had a combined record of 7-43 from 2006-10.

"We expect to be successful," said Durossette, who returned for a second stint as head coach following a five-year break. "It's going to be tough to change the culture real quick. Everything is new. The players have to trust us. Hopefully, we get better each week."

Ceres High will play at Hilmar (0-1) on Friday at 7 p.m.