It took a half for Manteca to figure out East Union’s new-look offense Friday at Guss Schmiedt Field, but once they did, it was business as usual for the Buffaloes.

They clamped down on Jackson Fay and the rest of the Lancers for a second-half shutout, turning what started out as a seesaw struggle into a comfortable 56-20 victory.

EU’s star receiver, who has committed to UC Davis, played behind center all game in place of quarterback Kirk Simoni, who is out with an Achilles strain. Fay scored the final points for the Lancers (2-3, 6-3 overall) in the Valley Oak League contest with a 67-yard touchdown dash followed by his conversion run 10 seconds into the second quarter.

That closed East Union in, 21-20, and Fay at that point already had 171 yards and three touchdowns on 11 rushes.

It was all Buffaloes (4-0, 8-0) from there, as they rallied for 35 unanswered points.

Fay was held to just 5 yards on his next 11 carries for the rest of the game. He also attempted seven passes, completing four for 39 yards and an interception. East Union’s final offensive play of the game was the pick by Manteca cornerback Jayden Harris.

“Fay’s a dude, and he’s going to make some plays,” Manteca coach Mark Varnum said. “In the second half, we fixed some things and started playing Manteca football, and obviously the result shows that.”

Manteca’s stars also shined.

Junior tailback Nikko Juarez led the Buffaloes with 170 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries, while fullback Maava Tialavea added two touchdown scampers with 64 yards on seven rushes.

Receiver Quinn Martinez netted 93 yards from scrimmage on 11 total touches and was stopped short of the end zone on a 50-yard punt return early in the fourth quarter.

Quarterback Owen Gully was 8-of-13 passing for 87 yards and touchdown tosses to Micah Cardoza (6 yards) and Kyrin Barajas (14 yards).

“We knew it was going to be an uphill battle,” East Union coach Jason Stock said. “That’s a good football team over there, and we went toe-to-toe with them, we just haven’t been able to put four full quarters together.”

Barajas did his usual damage defensively, which included a sack, but he made an impact in other aspects. Not only did the fullback/linebacker catch score on the reception, which expanded the Buffs’ lead to 35-20 midway through the third quarter, but he nearly hit paydirt on a kickoff return.

With Manteca trailing 12-7 in the opening period, Barajas fielded the kickoff broke down the left sideline for a 60-yard return to the East Union 9-yard line. He slipped on the way to the goal line, as he tried to cut inside as Lancers tracked him down.

Barajas appreciates the few opportunities he gets to carry the ball.

“It’s a blessing,” he said. “There are so many good players that we get the ball to, but I’m excited that I can get the ball in so many different ways and I’m so thankful to coach Varnum for that.”

The reigning VOL champion Buffaloes are on track for a possible Week 10, winner-take-all showdown at Oakdale, which staved off Central Catholic on Friday 60-46 to remain unbeaten in league play. But first, Manteca must take care of Patterson next Friday, Oct. 24 on its final regular-season home game.

Meanwhile, East Union, which has now dropped 14 straight against Manteca, gets a much-needed break with its bye week upcoming. After winning their first six games under Stock, the Lancers had to face the VOL’s three traditional powerhouses in succession.

They close out the regular season at home against Mountain House on Oct. 31, and Stock expects Simoni to be back at full strength by then.

“We’ve had a little bit of adversity in the last three weeks and have been in some playoff-type environments, so I think that’s going to pay off down the road,” Stock said. “I don’t mean to knock anybody we may see in the playoffs, but (Manteca) is the No. 1 team in Division II. We can still get better from this, and we’ll get Kirk back. Now, we have a Wildcat package that we’ve used against two pretty damn good teams, so hopefully that’s going to pay off down the road.”