It was a successful week for the Escalon underclassmen on the gridiron, with a win on the road for the freshmen and a home victory for the JV football team.
The JV took the field Friday night, Sept. 4, hosting Chavez. They came away with a 35-20 win, grabbing an early 7-0 lead in the first quarter. Ty Caton scored on a nine-yard rushing play with Emmanuel Calderon adding the kick for the point after.
They made it 13-0 in the second quarter, as Vinny Reis scored on a 12-yard run but the kick was no good.
Chavez came back with a 69-yard scoring strike and added the kick, trimming Escalon’s lead to 13-7.
Answering back, the JV Cougars got a 49-yard rushing touchdown from Ryker Lial, who then took in the two-point conversion to make it 21-7.
Looking to extend the lead, Lial went in again on a four-yard rushing play, Calderon added the point after and the home team was cruising 28-7.
But Chavez then returned the kickoff 69 yards for a touchdown and added the extra point, getting to within 28-14 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Reis scored on a three-yard run, Calderon’s kick was good for a 35-14 lead. Chavez would get back on the board in the fourth quarter, on a huge 95-yard pass play, but the kick was no good, with the final score 35-20 in Escalon’s favor.
“Our offense was very efficient from the beginning, scoring on each possession, except for a missed field goal attempt in the fourth quarter,” said head coach Brant Rose. “Defensively we were able to limit the damage from Chavez, which will likely be the fastest team we face this season. Their team speed burned us on a few big plays, but aside from those few our defense forced multiple stops during the game.”
Kaiden Crawford also put a big hit on the Chavez QB and that led to an interception by Lucas Machado.
“We will be in for a very different style of game this week when smashmouth Oakdale comes to Engel Field,” Rose said.
Game time Friday, Sept. 11 is 5:30 p.m.
FRESHMEN
On the road at Chavez, the freshman Cougars came home Thursday night, Sept. 3 with a win. They outlasted the host Titans 14-6, a satisfying way to get their first victory of the season.
“Our guys really stepped up after a rough week coming off of a loss,” said head coach Nate Caton. “Coming into this game our guys were fired up and ready to get after it.”
Nixon Walker had two sacks and the defensive line play of Gunner McCurley, Hunter Morrill, and Mike Achterbrg was solid as well.
“Defense played lights out and did a great job with handling business,” noted Caton. “We were without one of our starting defensive tackles. Emmanuel Castro stepped up and did a great job. Danny Arevalo and Joseph O’Brien were flying around at linebacker and making tackles left and right.”
Also, Mason Rodriguez had a big interception on the first drive by Chavez.
Offensively, Caton said, the team played a good game, with better blocking and a harder running attack. Jeremiah Gentry stepped up to fill in for a missing starting right tackle, while the offensive line of Achterberg, Morrill, McCurley and Dylan Borges were strong.
“Danny Arevalo was the first one to score this season,” said Caton. “When we scored, the whole team celebrated like he won the Heisman Trophy.”
Even when Chavez tied it 6-6 in the fourth with just four minutes left in the game, the freshmen didn’t blink. They got a 40-yard rushing touchdown from Aiden Yates to make it 12-6 and Arevalo took in the two-point conversion to make the final score 14-6.
“I told the kids after the game how much we are improving but we have more work to do,” Caton said.
They are scheduled to play at Oakdale on Sept. 10.
