Another day, another shutout for the Manteca Cowboys.
Undefeated through four weeks in the National Youth Football League’s San-Stan Section, the Cowboys’ defensive unit kept its third straight opponent scoreless in a 14-0 victory over the Ceres Raptors Saturday at Manteca High.
Mikey Gonzalez was responsible for most of Manteca’s points. He grinded out 78 yards rushing including a 4-yard touchdown and returned an interception 99 yards for another score.
It was otherwise a rough outing for the offense, but the defense more than made up for it. Gabe Munoz rushed for 67 yards on just six carries and had one reception go for 45 yards. He also led the defense with 10 tackles, and Gonzalez recorded eight.
Quarterback Chris Hocker finished with 77 yards passing.
Also churning out strong efforts on the defensive end were Issac McClain, Luckie Cordova and Billy Sharmaoug, who each had seven tackles.
The Cowboys will look to improve to 5-0 this Saturday against the Modesto Jr. Eagles at East Union High.
In other youth football action from the area:
In Modesto, the Manteca Jr. Buffaloes drubbed the Big Valley Sabres to pick up a Trans Valley League victory Saturday. Mathew Wilkerson led the way with three touchdowns, one coming off a fumble return forced by Garrett DeVillenueva.
Tony Smith added 80 rushing yards and a touchdown, and Hector Soto ran for 63 and a score. Elijah Cooper finished with 44 rushing yards and a TD.
Michael Hatfield set the tone on the game’s first play from scrimmage by scooping up a fumble and taking it the other direction for the score. DeVillenueva ended up with two forced fumbles and an interception. Juan Moreno and Nick O’Brien both intercepted a pass. Chase McKee led the team with six tackles.
At Sierra High Saturday, the Manteca Jaguars ran into some hard luck in their loss to Merced.
Robert Davenport ran back a touchdown, but the play was called back because of a penalty. Augustin Mendoza (sack) and Austin Brice each had four tackles to lead Manteca’s solid defensive effort.
Quarterback Eddie Daube led the offense with 55 passing yards and 25 on the ground.
The Jaguars next face the Modesto Broncos at Modesto Christian Saturday in Central California League action.
Against the Salida Steelers Saturday, Marcus Patterson tacked on the game’s first points with a 25-yard touchdown jaunt for the Ripon Chiefs. But the offense struggled to sustain drives the rest of the way because of turnovers and penalties.
Cowboys 35, Raptors 0
Nicholas Lucchetti highlighted Manteca’s romp with a 118 yards and two touchdowns on just five attempts. Quarterback Jordan Perry connected for touchdown passes to Zachary Perard and Jonathan Montoya for 28- and 46-yard plays.
Montoya scored another touchdown on a 19-yard run, and Pawl Johnson ran one in from 27 yards out after Julian Lopez set it up with an interception.
Manteca found other ways to score, starting with Dionicio Samoy’s 73-yard punt return for its first six points. Baily Simons took the second-half kickoff 62 yards to the end zone, and Alberto Loazia added two more points with a safety.
The Manteca Jaguars’ bend-but-don’t-break defense starred, as the offense ran just 20 plays to Merced’s 59. Bryce Ison and Raule Uribe collected nine tackles apiece, while Lechi Nkwocha turned in eight tackles, two sacks and a forced fumble.
Andrew Guevara had four stops behind the line of scrimmage. Marcos Huerta intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble for another turnover. Also in on Manteca’s big-play defensive effort were Anthony Palomarez (sack, tipped pass), Mark Paule (fumble recovery) and Kolo Moa (six tackles).
Nkwocha accounted for the bulk of Manteca’s offense with 12 carries for 141 yards and two touchdowns.
Devin Nunez was in on three touchdowns — a 15-yard pass from C.J. Manning, an 11-yard run and a 12-yard toss to Chad Ott — in the Delta Rebels’ Delta Youth Football League victory over Modesto Saturday at East Union High.
Josh Sanchez added a 25-yard touchdown scamper, and Bobby Guillen and Mateo Hernandez combined for 110 rushing yards to lead the offense.
Mario Maher paced the defense with seven tackles and two sacks. Mateo Hernandez and Elijah Wolfson each picked off a pass; Ott and Nunez each turned in four tackles and a sack; and Guillen contributed six tackles and recovered a fumble.
Ripon improved to 4-0 in the Trans Valley League behind a sterling performance from the defense. Cody Haines recovered a fumble and Jordan Satterlee blocked a punt to set the tone early on. Trent Murphy also recovered a fumble, and Nick Price returned a pick for a score.
Luciano Gonzalez reeled in two touchdown grabs on passes from Price and Dwight Jackson. Caleb McCusker and Nick Navarro each scored on runs.
Manteca struggled mightily on offense, as it was limited to under 50 total yards. Big Valley opened up a 22-point lead in the opening quarter.
Jake Bechtel led the offense with 4.5 tackles and a fumble recovery. Alex Martell led the offense with 12 rushing yards, and QB Jeremy Silva passed for 12.
Cowboys 43, Raptors 0
Seuseu Alofatuli spearheaded a balanced offensive attack with six carries for 86 yards and three touchdowns. He also paced the defense with eight tackles.
Kyle Westley rushed for 76 yards and two TDs, and Devin Young added 63 and a score. Quarterback Angle Sena was 2-for-5 passing and rushed for 69 yards and a touchdown. Seth Vera stood out on the defensive end with six tackles and two fumble recoveries.
The Delta Rebels had three rushers pile up at least 80 yards. Sean Cann, Derek Range and Nikko Anaya grinded out 81, 86 and 85 rushing yards, respectively. Cann and Range each scored a touchdown.
Matthew Vanhook recorded nine tackles and intercepted a pass to spearhead the defense. Anthony Rosales chimed in with five stops, and Michael Frisby added a sack and a fumble recovery.
It was the R.J. Davis and Aaron Paschini show on for the Ripon Chiefs. Davis got his team on board with a 60-yard kickoff return and later tacked on additional points with a safety and an interception runback.
Paschini helped Ripon break it open in the second half, first with a 55-yard catch-and-run play from QB Andrew Durrer, then a 60-yard interception return. Logan Orlando provided the rest of the scoring with a quarterback sneak.
Zachary Bailey and Marcello Longstreth each recorded a sack for the defense.
Manteca rolled to victory behind running backs Miguel Lopez, James Thomas and Joseph Goodman, who each scored a touchdown. Anand Hundal filled in nicely for starting quarterback Jacob Souza, who was out with an illness.
Gregory Rivera, Caden Ramsey and Robert McConlogue (interception) led the defense.
Marcus Rivas led the Manteca Chargers with 18 rushes for 164 yards and four touchdowns. LaDondi Ceasar and Johnny Blackwell ran in TDs from 9 and 45 yards out, respectively.
The Dublin Falcons were held scoreless until the final minutes. Jonathon Shaefer sparked the defense with two sacks and a fumble recovery.
Juan Gomez, Scott Teicheira, Colton Tarp and Devin Gonzales each turned in a sack, while Cameron Ceja intercepted a pass and returned it to the Falcon 6 to set up Rivas’ final touchdown.
Cowboys 13, Raptors 12
Anthony Martinez led Manteca’s defensive battle with seven tackles, a quarterback sack and a forced fumble. Martinez also aided the offense with 48 rushing yards and a TD.
Tony Rosillo had nine rushes for 65 yards and ran in the Cowboys’ other score. Julian Scoz finished with eight tackles on the defensive end, and Presley DeMello recorded six stops and deflected a pass.
The Modesto Knights had trouble keeping Gino Allen from running wild, as he racked up 100 yards and three touchdowns. Jozion Rollins rushed for 62 yards and two scores, with Pili Hines adding another TD.
Allen was also a workhorse defensively, where he led the team with eight tackles and two sacks. Austin Greene turned in six tackles and three sacks. Rollins finished with five tackles and an interception, and Tyler Garlets chipped in four stops and a sack.