Getting the chance to play on their home field in their only game of the week, the varsity Cougars made the most of it, defeating visiting Hughson in Trans-Valley League soccer action, 2-1, on Wednesday, Jan. 14.
Adrian Velazquez notched the first goal for Escalon and Diego Arizmendi got the second, which proved to be the game winner. Hughson did knot the score at 1-1, with Escalon then coming back to get the victory.
“Lizandro Torres assisted Adrian’s goal and Adrian assisted Diego’s headed goal on a corner kick,” explained varsity head coach Paul Silva.
It was a 5-1 win for the JV soccer boys, also taking on Hughson at home.
Marcus Gonzalez scored two goals, one on a penalty kick, while Adrian Tristan, Moises Cortes and Gabriel Lupercio scored one goal apiece. Nothing assists were Oma Pantoja and Angel Rodriguez.
GIRLS SOCCER
In a road game at Hughson on Wednesday, Jan. 14, it was a shutout win, 1-0, for the Lady Cougars in Trans-Valley League play.
“We definitely needed this game to get back in the win column,” said assistant coach Jim Ball. “We scored in the first half. Jasmine Barron made a cross to the center of the box from the left side and Adriana Romero was able to head it in for the only goal of the game.”
The one goal tuned out to be enough as the Lady Cougar defense didn’t let Hughson get much offensive traction.
“We had three sophomores step up on defense,” Ball said. “Georgia Northcutt, Ava Rodriguez, and Miley Krieger worked hard and created numerous offsides penalties, which slowed the Hughson attack.”
Also getting high marks for their defensive efforts were Gweneth Goodman and Emma Rangel.
“Our first-year keeper, Payton Abbott, had another outstanding game with 19 saves,” Ball noted.
Romero led the team with six shots on goal during the afternoon, followed by Barron, Kenadie Baker and Emma Strong, who each had two shots on net.
The JV girls were 4-0 winners on the road Wednesday at Hughson, with three goals scored by Lola Duenas to lead the team. The JV squad had been battling through injuries but has continued to find a way to win.
BOYS BASKETBALL
In their only game of the week, the Escalon varsity basketball boys took the home court on Jan. 14 and soundly defeated Hughson, winning by a lopsided 83-34 final.
“Prior to this game, Hughon just came off an overtime loss at Ripon Christian, so we knew they had it in them to play well and beat anyone in our league,” head coach Nate Bartelink said. “Our guys were ready and focused. We came out with a ton of energy and everything fell into place throughout the game. We methodically controlled the game from start to finish. It was kind of a perfect storm.”
Pacing the team was Jake Ferreira, who not only played solid defense but put in a career high 31 points, including six three-point baskets.
“Our effort was amazing. We played with great pace on offense and shared the ball and generated and made quality shots,” Bartelink said of the overall effort. “We dominated the possession game; winning the turnover and rebounding categories handily. Our defense was really strong … our entire team executed the defensive gameplan as good as they could’ve, geared towards minimizing the scoring opportunities for Hughson’s best player. Without a doubt, it was our most complete game of the season. It was fun to watch.”
Logan Huebner had 17 points, nine rebounds, five assists, three steals, and two blocks. Conner Jones added 10 points and six rebounds, Ben Ferreira and Donovan Martinez each scored nine points and Ryan Huebner pulled down 12 rebounds.
The Cougars finished the week at 11-8 overall, 2-1 in TVL play. They are scheduled to host Ripon on Thursday, Jan. 22 and travel to Orestimba for a Friday night game, Jan. 23.
At the JV level, the boys were 68-45 winners over Hughson. Trevor Jansen had 23 points and Benji Novetzke added 16.
“Great team defensive effort highlighted by Ian Trejo, who also added eight points,” JV coach Dave Anderson said.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Just one TVL contest was on the schedule for the Escalon varsity girls and they had no trouble on the road at Hughson, winning the Jan.13 contest by a 52-19 decision.
“We led 16-4 early in the second but Hughson went on a 6-0 run,” said head coach Joseph Dalpogetti. “We were making some mistakes in transition that we needed to clean up. We proceeded to go on a 15-1 run and led 31-11 at halftime.”
Hughson couldn’t get anything going on the court and Dalpogetti said the game “never got any closer” in the second half. Leading the team were Madi Babasa with 22 points and Ari Velasco with 11.
The girls took advantage of their league bye to travel to face off with Franklin of Elk Grove on Thursday, Jan. 15.
“They’re a solid D1 team whose record doesn’t reflect their talent,” the coach said. “We came out of there with a frustrating 59-55 OT loss.”
The Lady Cougars trailed at halftime, but battled their way back and had control of the game late in the contest.
“We led by four with two minutes left when Madi picked up her fifth foul on a beyond questionable call,” the coach said. “They tied the game. We went coast to coast and got a no call on an Ari lay up with six seconds left.”
From there, the Escalon girls ran an inbound play and missed a lay up that would have won the game in regulation.
“In OT we just didn’t have enough scoring without Madi,” Dalpogetti explained of taking the loss. “Ari finished with a game high 29 points.”
Babasa had 10 in the non-league loss.
Times Editor Marg Jackson contributed to this report.
