The Los Banos Tiger’s varsity football team (4-2 overall, 3-0 WAC) traveled to Mountain House to battle the Mustangs (4-1) on Friday, Sept. 30, and came home with a 29-21 victory to remain undefeated in WAC conference play.
The Tigers controlled the game offensively using a potent ground game, rushing for a total of 307 yards with Mark Carreiro (162 yards, 22 carries, and 1 TD) and David Herrera (141 yards, 20 carries, and 2 TDs) accounting for all but four of the total yards. Herrera added 64 yards passing and a touchdown.
The Mustangs scored first to take a 7-0 lead when Marin Goolsby scored on a 12-yard run, and Montgomery Carey kicked the PAT.
Los Banos tied the score at 7-7 when Carreiro cut up the field behind a block by Jackson Silva and rambled 59 yards for a touchdown, and Jose Esquivel added the PAT kick.
Kayson Welch gave the Tigers a 13-7 lead when he caught a 54-yard scoring strike from Herrera.
Amari Brooks connected with Antonio Divido on a 47-yard touchdown pass, and when Montgomery Amari kicked the PAT, the Mustangs regained the lead at 14-13.
Herrera scored the first of his two touchdowns on a six-yard run giving Los Banos the lead at 19-14.
Jose Esquivel upped the Tiger lead to 22-14 when he kicked a 39-yard field goal early in the third quarter.
Los Banos closed out their scoring in the fourth period when Herrera powered over the goal line from seven yards out, and when Esquivel added the PAT, the Tigers held a commanding lead at 29-14.
The Mustangs used a Tiger fumble on the Los Banos four-yard line to narrow the gap to 29-21 as Orlando Syth scored from the four-yard line, and Amari added the PAT with two minutes left in the game.
Mountain House tried for an on-side kick, but the Tigers recovered the ball and ran out the clock for their third consecutive win.
The Tiger defense played an outstanding game, recording five quarterback sacks, two by Cade Torres (9 tackles) and one each from Jett Lindeman (11 tackles), Adan Salas (10 tackles), and Daylen Mankel (his eighth sack, along with seven tackles). Lorenzo Chavez added 11 tackles and a fumble recovery.
In a battle of field goals, the Tiger JV squad dropped a heartbreaking loss to the Mustangs by a 6-3 score.
Pablo Luna kicked a 29-yard field goal for the Tiger’s only score. The Los Banos defense played an outstanding game with Luke Reyna, Ethan Briseno, Angel Valero, Adrian Rivas, Raul Dias, and Damien Calderon, making plays all over the field all game long.
