The Sierra High sophomore boys basketball team won another tightly-contested struggle Friday, holding off visiting East Union 56-54 to remain undefeated in the opening week of the Valley Oak League season.

The Timberwolves (3-0, 7-4 overall) snuck away with a 48-47 win over Sonora Tuesday before dispatching Ceres 59-53 on Wednesday. East Union (2-1, 7-3) rattled in a layup at the buzzer to make the score closer.

Both teams had three players contribute double-digit scoring. Bret Lewis led Sierra with 14 points, John Waggy turned in 11 and Jon Berry 10.

Wayne Cheung paced the Squires with 17 points and was followed by Zac Carrillo’s 15 and Alex Del Real’s 10.

B.J. O’Dell poured in a game-high 24 points, as Manteca held on late to defeat the visiting Cougars.

Dylan Alexander had 19 points for Weston Ranch, and Daiveon Leverett churned out four points and nine rebounds.

LATHROP — Ricky Chavez and Marcus Conley posted 11 and 10 points, respectively for the host Spartans (0-3, 2-9), who were unable to overcome Oakdale’s eight 3-pointers.

WESTON RANCH — The Buffaloes opened the fourth quarter with a 10-point lead and blew it open for their second consecutive league win.

Manteca (2-1, 8-4) rode the hot hands of Mia Ramirez and Karlesha Thompson who combined for 38 points. Thompson led the charge with 26 points, nine steals and five rebounds, while Ramirez played the floor general with 12 points, eight assists, 8 rebounds and four steals.

OAKDALE – Janet Visaya knocked down three free throws in the game’s final 30 seconds, helping Lathrop escape with the one-point victory. Visaya was hot throughout, connecting on four 3-pointers in the contest to lead the Spartans. Janel Butler pulled down a game-high 10 boards to lead the Spartans’ effort on the glass.

Allison Telles and Kristin Piasecki both finished with 12 points to lead the Lancers.

Shelby Shirron was Sierra’s leading scorer, also finishing with a dozen. Teammate Alison Armstrong chipped in with seven.

The Cougars remained undefeated with a lopsided win over the visiting Manteca Buffaloes. Manveer Hundal led the Buffaloes with four points, while Dilpreet Kaur chipped in with four.

The Lancers rolled to victory behind a stellar performance from Emoni Burks, who led East Union with 12 points and 16 boards. Barbara Baxter and Valerie Nester helped the cause with seven boards apiece.

Host Manteca (3-0, 6-4) built a 32-16 halftime lead but had to stave off a late run to keep its undefeated streak in VOL play alive.

Nick Burrows and Ryan Fox pumped in 15 and 14 points, respectively to lead the Buffaloes. Rodney Fryer added eight points.

Sean Visperas led Weston Ranch with 14 points, and Albert Luyon had 10.

Sierra (3-0, 10-0) continued its tear to start the season by jumping out early on its visiting rival. The Timberwolves led 22-5 at the end of the first quarter and stretched it to 38-12 by halftime.

Emmanuel Elijah fired in 12 points to lead Sierra, which had 10 different players score. Eric Melgar added 11. Will Brink led East Union with 13 points.