Manteca has boasted some daunting defenses over the years, but the 2025 unit may have topped them all.
Across town, East Union’s offense set several single-season program records on its way to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division IV final.
Both were rewarded on the All-Valley Oak League team.
Senior edge rusher Mathieu Evans and junior cornerback Jayden Harris are Co-Outstanding Defensive Players after leading Manteca (6-0 VOL, 11-1 overall) to a second consecutive outright league championship.
East Union’s college-committed receivers also received high honors. UC Davis signee Jackson Fay is the Outstanding Offensive Player, while Air Force commit JP Abrew is Utility Player of the Year.
Additionally, Jason Stock was named Coach of the Year in his first season at the helm. He guided the Lancers (3-3, 9-4) to their first section final since 1989, when he starred at fullback for the school. East Union lost the D-IV championship to Roseville 31-29 on a last-second field goal.
MVP went to Oakdale’s Wes Burford. The Air Force-bound fullback led the Mustangs (5-1, 10-3) to the SJS Division III final and became the section’s all-time leading rusher. He repeats as MVP after sharing the award with Manteca’s Quinn Martinez.
Daniel Mataele of Patterson (2-4, 4-7) is Lineman of the Year. The 6-foot-5, 372-pound giant played four years of varsity ball and is signed with Sac State.
Evans and Harris anchored a Manteca defense that surrendered 15.2 points in six league games and even less (12.8) overall.
The 6-5, 214-pound Evans managed to stand out in the Buffaloes’ impressive front. He led the team with 13 tackles for losses and 3.5 sacks in league contests. Evans had one of his best games against East Union, compiling 12 tackles, 5.0 for losses and a sack.
Harris is one of three players in the SJS with a section-high nine interceptions, the last of which went for a go-ahead pick-six in the Division II semifinals. The Buffs went on to drop their lone loss to eventual Division II-AA state champion St. Mary’s, 19-14.
Six of Harris’ interceptions came in league play, and two of them were returned for touchdowns. The 6-3 cornerback shined in Manteca’s Week 10 win at Oakdale, which secured the outright crown. Harris had a season-high 13 tackles and a pick-six.
Recruited as a receiver, Fay lined up in several spots for East Union — even behind center after starting quarterback Kirk Simoni missed time late in the league season with a leg injury. The fleet-of-foot Fay caught 30 passes for 411 yards and seven touchdowns, while rushing for 414 yards (9.6 per carry) and five more scores in league play. He also returned a kickoff for a TD.
Overall, Fay nearly had a rare 1,000-1,000 season with 895 rushing and 928 receiving. He set a single-season scoring record for East Union with 35 touchdowns and eight conversions for 226 points — good for second most in the section and sixth most in the state.
Fay had three five-touchdown games, one of them in a 71-55 loss at Oakdale in which he racked up 216 yards on 13 receptions.
As league champion, Manteca has the biggest contingent on the first-team offense and defense.
The highly-recruited Martinez is one of just two players to make both, the other being Central Catholic’s Fresno State-bound receiver/defensive back Chase Perino. Martinez goes out as a three-time selection on the first-team defense as a cornerback. On offense, the receiver headed Manteca’s air attack with 436 yards and six TDs on 27 catches.
Junior Nikko Juarez (985 yards, 12.5 per carry, 16 TDs) repeats as an all-league first-team running back. Junior guard Michael Lopez and senior tackle Kevin Bradley were two of the big linemen paving the way for Juarez, and both join him on the first team.
Manteca’s formidable defensive front has three first-team selections in senior inside linebacker Kyrin Barajas (37 tackles, two sacks) and senior defensive linemen Xyloh Kuresa (33 tackles, two sacks, pick-six) and Robert Nelson (37 tackles, two sacks).
Senior quarterback Owen Gully (66.2% completions, 957 yards, 16 TDs, two interceptions) and senior safety Mateo Esparza (58 tackles) made All-VOL second team for Manteca.
East Union has two first-team selections in fourth-year quarterback Kirk Simoni and senior running back Brayden Camara.
Camara rambled for 673 rushing yards (9.0 per carry) and 13 touchdowns. His overall totals are new single-season rushing records at EU with 1,849 and 29 TDs.
Simoni went down during the Central Catholic game and missed the cross-town clash with Manteca the following week. He still managed to put up impressive numbers in his limited league action, completing 66.4% of passes for 1,024 yards, 12 touchdowns and a pick. He even showed off running ability with 114 yards rushing and two TDs.
Lancers joining Abrew on the All-VOL second-team offense are sophomore tackle Colton Madden and senior lineman Joel McKnight. Senior inside linebacker Hoku Ap’e (64 tackles, fumble recovery), senior outside linebacker Chris Gallego (44 tackles, fumble recovery), junior lineman Erik Cortez (26 tackles, sack) and junior cornerback Nikko Hisatomi (24 tackles, interception, forced fumble) made the second-team defense.
Sierra (0-6, 2-8) had three second-team selections in sophomore running back Darien East (517 rushing yards, 164 receiving, six TDs), junior inside linebacker Damian Densmore (19 tackles) and sophomore defensive back Ozias Siga (36 tackles).
Players from area schools receiving honorable mention:
East Union — Gunnar Fay, Andreis Velazquez, Jose Guizar, Jacob Paris, Ricky Soria, Jesse Martinez, Anthony Oteri, Daniel Grijalva, Jeremy Carlson, Anthony Zavala, Gabriel Lopez, Eddie Ramirez, Ty Aquino, Garrett Hicks, Joseph Batiz and Jesus Magana.
Manteca — Nate Slikker, Maava Tialavea, Carson Sablan, Jaylin Harris, Michael Smith, Gael Juarez.
Sierra — Aydan Rura, Teagan Nazzisi, Blama Kamara.
