After putting 28 points on the board in the second quarter, Escalon’s varsity football team looked like it had everything under control.
But a chance for the second offensive unit to take the field on Friday night at Engel Field in the second half didn’t go as well as anticipated, and the host Cougars had to hang on to escape with a 35-28 win over the visiting Lodi Flames. It was the final preseason game for Escalon and they evened their record at 2-2.
“We didn’t score in the first or third quarters,” varsity head coach Andrew Beam said. “But we did score 28 points in the second quarter and that is exactly what we wanted, a big lead at half.”
Lodi was stymied in that first half, unable to get any points on the board, and Escalon seemed ready to take full control as they were also in line to get the second half kickoff.
“We got some seconds in but we made a lot of mistakes and that’s what was frustrating, because we spent a lot of time with the seconds this week to get them ready,” Beam said.
There were seven fumbled snaps between the second unit center and quarterback, though Escalon was able to recover five of them, Lodi getting just two fumble recoveries.
Neither team got on the board in the first quarter. Escalon broke through in the second quarter on back-to-back touchdown runs from Dylan Ball, the first on a 1-yard run and the second on a 9-yard run. Teammate Jeremy Grivette had some carries to help set up the scores. Ricky Chavez sent the first extra point through; Brody Abbott notched the second. Later in the second quarter, senior quarterback Logan Huebner connected with Chase Cummings for a 29-yard touchdown play, Chavez putting through the extra point to make it 21-0 Escalon. And before the first half came to an end, Escalon used a bit of razzle dazzle to score their fourth touchdown of the night.
It was a hook-and-ladder play with Huebner completing a 12-yard pass to Cummings, who then tossed the ball to teammate Ball, who ran it 42 yards for the score. Abbott tacked on that extra point, giving the home team a 42-0 advantage.
It was a night where the Cougars were back at home for the first time since Aug. 22 and it was also an evening that saw dozens of Tiny Cougars perform a halftime routine with the EHS cheerleading squad.
Against Escalon’s second unit, Lodi broke through in the third quarter with a 16-yard run from their quarterback and the point after to get to within 28-7. They would go on to score three more times in the fourth – including a couple of touchdowns in the last few minutes – while Escalon countered with one touchdown in the fourth quarter to put the 35-28 win on the books.
“There were a few bright spots,” Beam said, noting that back-up quarterback Donovan Martnez found Curtis Thomas in the end zone for a touchdown, a scoring strike from 23 yards out. It was the first varsity touchdown for Thomas. Abbott put the extra point through and the touchdown turned out to be the margin of victory.
Offensively, starting quarterback Huebner was 5-for-9 for 90 yards and two touchdowns; Ball had five carries for 76 yards and three touchdowns; Cummings had three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Conner McDowell again had a strong game, leading the way with 10 tackles and one fumble recovery. Ball and Angel Pesqueira had fumble recoveries as well.
And while the head coach typically huddles with the team in the end zone after each game and then gives them some time with family and friends, there was no such routine this past Friday night. After the final seconds ticked off and the Cougars barely got out with the win, Beam ordered all the players off the field immediately and in to the locker room.
“We can’t play like that again,” he said simply, opting to address the players privately instead.
On the field, cheer coach Emme Altamirano said it was a successful night for the Tiny Cougars program, and that’s an event she enjoys being a part of, even taking charge of some 120 youngsters this year.
“They go all the way from five years old up to 12 years old,” she said of the elementary and middle school students taking part.
The Tiny Cougars spend time working with their older counterparts, cheering both on the sidelines and then performing at halftime. Altamirano said sometimes it’s hard to tell who is having more fun during the evening.
“It’s just so rewarding for them, honestly, because not only do they get to work with kids that are younger than them, they get to teach them the passion that they love,” Altamirano said of her cheer squad members. “And it’s all about spreading positivity, teaching these girls not only a sisterhood community, but also to cheer for our town and to be a united front; that’s what we are best at.”
Back on the football side, Beam said even though the team had to hang on, he was glad they got the win and evened their preseason record at 2-2. They won both games at home, against Rodriguez out of Fairfield and against Lodi; falling on the road to Chavez of Stockton and Oakdale.
“We know we played a tough preseason,” Beam said. “The teams we lost to (Chavez and Oakdale) have one loss between them, they went 7-1 n preseason.”
A tough preseason schedule notwithstanding, Beam said the Cougars haven’t yet played a crisp, clean game for a full four quarters.
It will take their best effort as they move into the TVL schedule, regular season play, if they want to get victories.
“I hope Friday was an awakening; it’s time to re-focus,” Beam said. “We go in to TVL and our first three games are Sonora, Hilmar and Hughson. There’s no time for messing around or else we will be 0-3 to start league.”
With the preseason over, everyone goes back to 0-0, and Beam said the Cougars need to be better with their preparation off the field, their performance on the field.
“We’re going up against the number one team in this area, Sonora, they have an all-time team and we see them in Week One of TVL play. They are a very, very talented team,” Beam said. “But if you’re a competitor, you’re looking forward to this game, they are one of the best teams we’ll face.”
Kickoff in Sonra is set for 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 19.
JUNIOR VARSITY
Keeping up their winning ways, Escalon’s JV team shut out visiting Lodi by a 42-0 final on Friday night, with the game featuring a running clock in the second half.
Escalon scored on a 40-yard rushing play by Val Garcia and the Juan Pablo De Luna point after to go up 7-0. Dylan Machado scored on an 81-yard play, De Luna kick, for a 14-0 lead in the first quarter.
Three more touchdowns for Escalon gave them a 35-0 lead at halftime. Machado scored on a 24-yard rushing play with the kick by De Luna good; Archer Sanders ran one in on a 33-yard play with the De Luna kick; and Sanders scored again, from 14 yards out, with the kick by De Luna good for the 35-0 lead.
“It was a dominating performance for our defense from the start,” said head coach Brant Rose. “Our defense forced and recovered four fumbles during the game.”
Escalon’s final touchdown, in fact, came on a De Luna fumble recovery in the end zone for the score. He then added the extra point for the 42-0 final.
“Ryan Huebner and Rhodey Trimble both forced fumbles during the two times Lodi entered the red zone,” noted Rose. “Jacob Morales forced another on a kickoff after our second score and Trimble forced another in the fourth quarter.”
Offensively, Rose said, the team had a combination of big plays and sustained drives throughout the game. They did have two turnovers, on an interception and a fumble, and they had to punt one time.
Still, Rose was pleased overall with the game from his JV team.
“Hoping this momentum continues as we enter the gauntlet of the Trans-Valley League,” he said.
The JV team takes on Sonora at 5p.m. on Friday.
FRESHMEN
Hosting Salinas in Thursday night action, Sept. 11, the freshmen took a 22-0 loss.
“Salinas is a big school with 2500-plus kids, facing us with about 800 kids. That’s what we were up against,” said head coach Nate Caton.
In the first quarter, the visitors scored on a punt return and got the 2-point conversion to go up 8-0. Escalon then went three and out, with Salinas scoring right away and again gong for two, putting the home team down 16-0 at the half.
“Our coaches were impressed with how our kids were battling and keeping us in the game,” Caton said of the first half effort.
Salinas did score in the third quarter to go up 22-0, which was the final score.
“Throughout the game, offensively, we kept moving the ball, but still have struggled to score in the red zone,” Caton said. “Our backs, Lucas Trejo, Ty Caton and Adam Cordeiro moved the ball well, however, penalties hurt us the most.”
The team’s starting center went down and Caton said second string center German Rodriguez stepped up to the challenge. There were also big plays from defensive lineman Alex Gomez and outside linebacker Cordeiro.
“Despite losing, I thought the kids handled it pretty well,” said Caton. “One takeaway I got from Thursday night, we get to start over with league opening up with every team starting at 0-0 again. We had the toughest schedule and I think the game will be slowed down for us.”
The freshmen open up TVL play at home on Thursday, Sept. 18, hosting Sonora.
