Thirty years ago, on March 25, 1984, Kevin Wentworth, only a freshman at Manteca High, blistered the back nine of the Manteca Park Golf Course for a school- record 33 that overshadowed the Buffaloes’ easy 193-251 Valley Oak League victory over East Union High. For EU, it was again freshman Mike Battles who led the Lancers, carding a 40.



In other sports stories from the Bulletin files:

10 years ago: April 1, 2004 – A pair of runs in each of the first three innings was all East Union High needed in a 6-2 win over host Sonora High in baseball action on Wednesday.  Ryan Fleckenstein had a stellar performance on both ends of the ball, getting two of the Lancers’ 10 hits, including an RBI double. On the mound, he pitched a complete game striking out eight batters and walking two.

John Reynolds pitched a two-hit shutout Wednesday afternoon as Sierra High blanked Pitman High 4-0 in Valley Oak League baseball action. He fanned six and didn’t walk a batter. Chris McKinney had a pair of hits, including a double, for the Lancers. Pitman sophomore Colin Kaepernick kept the Sierra attack handcuffed with a mixture of fast and curve balls, but his teammates committed six errors behind him.

The defending league champion East Union High tennis squad showed no signs of slowing down after obliterating Oakdale High 12-3 on Wednesday. EU (10-0) got half its points by sweeping the doubles competition. Drew Pearson-Travis Haroldsen and Jerry Gammon-Joe Rocha were the Lancer winners.

A bloop single in the fifth inning was all that kept East Union High pitcher Brittany Tachara from a perfect game on Wednesday, the Lancers beating host Sonora High 6-0 in a softball game. Kelly Negus led the hitters, getting 3-for-4 with a double. Tachara struck out 14 batters without a walk.

Katelyn Quaresma turned in three goals for a hat trick to lead the Sierra High soccer team to a one-sided 7-0 home victory over Pitman High on Tuesday. Veronica Pires saw action in the second half and scored twice for the Timberwolves. Other girls netting goals were Brittany Doty and Cheri Deprater.

Candace Brennan accounted for the Manteca High soccer team’s first hat trick of the season in a 4-0 road victory over Oakdale High on Tuesday. Jennifer Dickman scored the other Lady Buff goal.

Ryan Silva shot the lowest score of the year on Monday, the Manteca High golfer ended with a 76 at the Diablo Grande golf course, the fifth VOL match. Buhach Colony High won the match, with East Union High taking second and Sierra High, third. The Buffaloes, despite Silva’s performance, finished fifth. The Lancers were led by Nate Applebaum, who came in with a 78. Brett Beck shot an 80, the best score for the T’wolves.

The undefeated and defending VOL champion East Union High boys’ swim team used the final event (400 meter relay) to edge Oakdale High 82-80 on Friday. The girls were not as lucky, losing 115-53 to the Mustangs. Danny Riolo (200 free, 100 fly, 400 relay) and Scott Toone (100 back, 50 free, 400 relay) were multiple winners for the Lancers. In the girls’ action, Ashley Bingham won the 500 free and the 400 free relay team were the only wins for the Lady Lancers.

Several first place finishes by Ja-Neil Bragg aided in the Sierra High girls’ swim team defeating Manteca High 119-51 on Friday. The SHS boys also beat the Buffaloes in a 110-55 final tally . Bragg showed her strength in winning the 50 free, the 500 free and being a part of winning 400 and 200 free relay teams. Melissa Brock was a double winner, taking the 100 free and the 200 IM. Manteca’s girls were able to squeeze out only one individual win. In boys’ action, the Buffaloes’ Andrew May claimed first in both the 100 back and the 100 fly. Nicholas Hafer led the T’wolf winners with firsts in the 100 breast and the 50 free.

Starting the second half of the league tennis season, Sierra High took down Oakdale High 9.5-5.5 on Friday. Brian Phommachit and the T’wolf doubles team of Kyle Davis-Ray Melencio swept their matches to carry the bulk of the team’s overall score.

Manteca High’s Alyssa Hardcastle got a single, double, triple and hit a home run to pace the Lady Buff softball team to a 15-2 thumping of host Pitman High in Turlock yesterday. She drove in nine runs in the mercy-shortened game. The win was the first league victory for MHS this season.

The Manteca High boys’ track team defeated Pitman High 73.5-63.5 yesterday for the Buffaloes’ first VOL win of the season. Enrique Jimenez (3200 and 1600), Andre Nunis (100 and 200) and John May (shot put and discus) were double winners for the Buffs. The Lady Buffs dropped a 105-24 decision to the Pride. Katelyn McGehee, Hansen and Robin Mayer were the only winners for MHS.



20 years ago: March 29, 1994 – Manteca High pitcher Don Morgan threw a six-hit 5-0 shutout at the visiting Livingston High baseball team on Tuesday, and added a home run and a single to the Buff attack. John Tubbs also got two hits for MHS.

Setting a handful of personal and school records, the East Union High swimmers swept the undermanned Calaveras High team out of the EUHS pool Friday afternoon. In the girls’ competition, which EU won 136-30, Tasha Gurney shattered her own school record in the 100 breast with a clocking of 1:20.26. She also swam on the winning 200 IM relay team. Felicia Hellums set a school record in the 500 free (6:02.39). In the boys’ division, Brett Hinton, Scott Souza and Jason Coenenberg each collected two firsts to pace the Lancers to a 125-19 dunking of the Redskins. Hinton, a sophomore, broke a school mark in the 500 free with a time of 5:27.92.

The East Union High golf team improved to 6-0 in VOL play with a 204-218 win over previously unbeaten Ceres High at the Manteca Park course on Friday. Brett Sapp earned medalist honors with an even-par 37.

East Union High pounded out 16 hits Friday to open the VOL baseball season with a 16-8 win over Bear Creek High in Stockton. Three Lancers gathered three hits each in the game with Matt Solomon also driving in five runs. Also slapping three hits for EU were Gene Ballardo and John Abrew.



30 years ago: March 27, 1984 – Eric Duarte showed he deserves the number-one spot on the East Union High pitching staff Tuesday by no-hitting Sonora High 3-0 in his first VOL start as a varsity player. He did it in style, mowing down 21 of the 22 batters he faced and coming within four outs of a perfect game. Chris Indelicato had a two-run double for the Lancers.

East Union High’s golfers captured their second straight victory at Sonora High,  topping the Wildcats, 248-252. Mick Huffman led the way for the winners with a 43.

Despite scratching out only three hits, the East Union High softball team took advantage of good base-running and its opponents’ mistakes to capture a 5-1 VOL win over Sonora High. Lollie Castro scattered five hits and went the distance to strike out five and walk just two batters to earn the win.

With Manteca High being their own worst enemies, Oakdale High tallied six runs in the seventh inning to pull out a 14-10 come-from-behind softball victory at the Northgate Complex. Tracy Brown and Tamm y McBride were the bag bats on the day for MHS.

Right-hander Sam Ochoa put his fast balls to good use, mowing down the Oakdale High batting order en route to a five-hit 2-0 shutout. Ochoa went the distance and struck out six. Raymond Victor, Kelly Webb and John Aguilar all had two hits each for the winners.



40 years ago: March 27, 1974 – What had been a beautiful pitchers’ duel for eight innings was rudely shattered Friday as East Union High  punched across four runs in the top of the ninth and went on to take a 4-0 victory from Modesto’s Central Catholic High. EU’s Miles Branson and the Raiders’ pitcher had battled through eight frames of scoreless play, with Branson allowing seven hits, while fanning nine batters and walking just two.

Despite a triple winner in Gary Scott and a double winner in Kevin Nicholson, the Manteca High track team dropped their first VOL meet of the season to Ceres High 68-67.

Manteca High is now tied for first in the VOL baseball standings on the strength of their 1-0 baseball win over Ceres High. The upstart Buffs deftly converted five hits into a single run and then rode the strong right arm of Mike Hubbard to the win. The slender pitcher limited the Bulldogs to two hits. Dan Vogel produced the game-winning hit with a double.

Coming up with a crucial win on the road, the Manteca High golf team overcame a major obstacle by defeating Sonora High 200-215 on the Wildcat course at Phoenix Lake. Larry Parlin, the Buffs’ only senior, had low medalist honors by firing a 37.

Winning only one of five team matches, the Manteca High tennis team lost its first match of the season to Livingston High, 4-1.  The Wolves fell to Terry Munoz, the Buffaloes’ number one singles player.



50 years ago: March 25, 1964 – Manteca High made its first win of the season an important one Saturday afternoon as they captured a 2-0 win over Gustine High in the opening round of the Atwater Invitational Baseball Tournament. The Buffaloes were paced to the win by the brilliant two-hit shutout pitching of Larry Gonsalves.  The senior right-hander, making his first start of the season after reporting late from basketball, held the losers to two bloop singles in recording the win. Singles by Paul Goodwin and Bob Leatherwood drove across the runs for the locals.



60 years ago: March 25, 1964 – The Manteca High track squad played host to the Modesto High track squad last Thursday and won its first meet of the season in the overall score. The Manteca boys were shifted around for this meet and made a good showing as they ran some of the events for the first time. Alex Paszkceiz won the 100 in 11.1.

Manteca High again met defeat at the hands of a good Liberty High baseball team by a score of 3-2 in an extra-inning contest that was a heartbreaker to lose. The pitchers from both squads pitched good ball to keep the batters in check.  The leading hitter for Manteca was Les Brandow, who had a great day at the plate by getting three hits, two them triples. Monte Kinsley hit a home run for the Buffs.

70 years ago: March 30, 1944 – In a game with Ceres High last Friday afternoon, Manteca High lost its first baseball game of the season by a 10-6 score. Marty Teunissen pitched for the Buffaloes, allowing 12 hits, 10 strikeouts and three walks. Buster Dowhower hit a home run with one man on. Elbert Wood and Curt Patterson both got three-baggers.



80 years ago: March 22, 1934 – The Manteca High baseball team won its second practice game of the season by defeating the Tracy High nine by a 6-2 score. Milo Candini, star sophomore twirler, pitched six innings, allowing one hit and striking out 10 batters.



90 years ago: March 28, 1924 – In one of the most exciting games of baseball seen on the Manteca High diamond, Stockton won from Manteca High by the score of 11-9. The game seesawed back and forth, and both teams scored runs in nearly every one of the seven innings played. Vest and Dutch Washington did the pitching for Manteca.



100 years ago: March 20, 1914 – The first baseball game of the season was pulled off Sunday.  The Manteca White Sox were defeated by the S. I. Black Stockings after playing eight innings with a score of 15-4. Emery Johnson, the village smith, was probably the individual star of the day by his catching and throwing, putting out three S. I.’s in one inning, three great catches and one fine throw home.