On Oct. 2, the Los Banos Tigers freshman football team (6–0 overall and 1–0 in the Central California Conference) hosted the El Capitan Gauchos and claimed their sixth consecutive victory by 20–8.
The young Tigers once again displayed an outstanding defense, limiting the Gauchos to one touchdown.
The defense was led by Grayson Houtekamer (10 tackles, a sack and a fumble), Dominic Nelson (four tackles and a sack), Emiliano Chavez (four tackles and a sack), Jeramaya Aguilar (four tackles) and Jacob Rocha (four tackles).
As for the Tigers offense, which rolled up a total of 262 yards, Tigers quarterback Adrian De La Cruz (4 of 6 passing, 135 yards, two TDs, four rushes, 52 yards and a TD) accounted for 187 total yards and three scores.
After their first two possessions resulted in turnovers on downs, the Tigers found the end zone, driving 47 yards in four plays.
De La Cruz connected with Aguilar (two catches, 79 yards and two TDs) on a 46-yard scoring pass. De La Cruz then ran in the 2-point conversion, giving the Tigers an 8–0 lead.
Tiger receiver Jeramaya Aguilar catches a perfectly thrown pass by quarter back Adrian De La Cruz.
A 12-yard TD run by the Gauchos’ James Gonzalez and the point after touchdown knotted the score at 8–8 going into halftime.
The Gauchos received the second half, but they never advanced the ball, as quarterback sacks by Nelson and Chavez stalled the Gauchos’ drive and forced a punt.
Following the Gauchos punt, the Tigers began their next possession at the Gauchos 45-yard line. The Tigers used runs by Jacob Nunez (nine carries and 56 yards) and Andrew Loretto (nine carries and 24 yards).
They also used pass completions from De La Cruz to Arthur Fernandez (two catches and 56 yards). The Tigers covered the 45 yards in five plays, capped by a 33-yard TD pass completion to Aguilar. The PAT failed, and the Tigers held a 14–8 advantage late in the fourth period.
The final Tigers score resulted when Houtekamer forced a Gauchos fumble and recovered the loose pigskin at the Tigers 36-yard line.
It took the Tigers nine plays to cover the 64 yards, ending when De La Cruz followed blocks by Sebastian Hurtado and James Coelho on a 34-yard scamper into the end zone with less than 30 seconds left in the game, making the final score 20–8 in favor of the Tigers.
The freshman Tigers will put their undefeated record on the line this Thursday when they travel to Merced to face the Bears. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.
