OAKDALE — If you would have told East Union head coach Jason Stock before Friday night’s Valley Oak League showdown against the Oakdale Mustangs that his Lancers would accumulate 447 yards of total offense to go along with 55 points, he probably would have thought they would have come out with the first victory over his former team in over three decades.

Wes Burford and the Mustangs (2-0 VOL, 5-1 overall) had other ideas, racking up 667 yards of their own in a 71-55 victory to give the Lancers (2-1, 6-1) their first loss of the season.

“Our kids played hard tonight,” Stock said. “We came out and started fast offensively, things kind of got away from us a bit in the second quarter, but I was really proud of how our guys responded once we got down.”

The Lancers could not have started any faster in the game.

After winning the toss and deferring to the second half, East Union linebacker Chris Gallego pounced on an Oakdale fumble on the opening kickoff on the Mustang 14-yard line to give a large traveling contingent in the visitor's bleachers something to cheer about.

Three plays later, senior running back Brayden Camara scored from 1 yard out to put the Lancers up 7-0 less than a minute into the game.

Burford and the Mustangs would set the tone for how things would go offensively for their side on the next possession, going 40 yards in three plays capped by the first of his seven touchdowns on the night for the Air Force commit. Burford would carry the ball 29 times out of Oakdale’s vaunted Wing-T against the Lancers, racking up 417 yards rushing on his own in a historic performance.

“Wes is a great football player, and he did what we needed him to do tonight,” Oakdale coach Garret Martin said. “To do what he did tonight while playing 90% of the snaps on defense is a testament to what kind of athlete he is.”

For every Burford blow dealt on the ground, East Union seemed to have an answer in its own contrasting style through the air. Senior quarterback Kirk Simoni accounted for seven touchdowns, throwing for six and running for another, to go along with 377 yards passing. His 19-yard strike on a well-designed post route to Jackson Fay put the Lancers up 14-7 six minutes into the game.

The touchdown would be the first of five on the night for Fay, who led the lancers with 13 catches for 211 yards.

“Kirk was Kirk tonight,” Fay said. “He has zero interceptions on the season for a reason and is always putting the ball in good spots for us to make plays. I wasn’t surprised at all by the way he came out and kept us in the game tonight against a really good team.”

Keying on the fullback dive to Burford, East Union was hit hard on the perimeter by a really good Mustang backfield. Senior running back Richard Flores (153 yards) would score his first of three touchdowns on the night from 31 yards out to make it 14-14 just two minutes later.

“We have three really good backs,” Martin said. “This offense is about getting everyone one through eleven to buy in for one another, and I think you saw what can happen when we do that tonight.”

During a stretch in the first and second quarters, East Union’s offense would falter just a bit, turning the ball over on downs once and punting twice, the only three possessions in the game that the Lancers would come away without points.

For Oakdale, it was exactly the opportunity it needed. A 28-point second quarter that included three Burford touchdowns helped propel the hosts to a 42-21 lead at the half.

Simoni and the Lancers would not go away quietly, as they capitalized on a couple of personal foul penalties from Oakdale to cut the score to 42-28 early in the third quarter after a tough five-yard run from the signal caller.

The Mustangs were able to answer yet again, extending the lead to 56-28 in the third quarter behind touchdown runs from Burford and Flores.

The Lancers would show the grit that earned them a 6-0 start to the season and No. 2 overall ranking in the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV, as Simoni led them back with 21 unanswered points to cut the lead to 56-49 after a 28-yard strike to Daniel Grijalva with 8:26 left in the fourth quarter.

“We knew this environment would be tough,” Stock said. “But for our guys to come out and battle back the way we did late is a testament to the work and preparation we put in coming into this game.”

In the end, the Lancers fell just one stop short of ultimately bringing the score level, as Oakdale put away the game late behind the final two touchdown runs from Burford to seal the game 71-55.

“An experience like this will do a lot for a team,” Stock said. “We know what lies ahead of us the rest of league play, and there are a bunch of things tonight we can take with us into those matchups. We’ll go back to work on Monday and refocus on stopping the run.”

Up next for East Union is Central Catholic at Dino Cunial Stadium. The Raiders, like the Mustangs, will come in to next Friday’s matchup against the Lancers rested off of a bye week.