Spartan win all about ‘Manuel’ labor
Monache-golden West game postponed
STRATHMORE — Even though the Strathmore High football team had the ball at the Roosevelt 36-yard line, it was facing third and 17 and all the momentum was on the Rough Riders’ side.
The pass seemed to hang in the sky for a long time but it was actually in the air for a couple of seconds. Jaylen Oats had thrown a perfect pass to Manuel Andrade, who outleaped — and outworked — the Roosevelt defender to make the leaping catch and take the reception into the end zone.
The 36-yard touchdown pass regained control of the game for the Spartans, giving them a 17-6 lead. SHS made that score stand up in a 17-6 win over Roosevelt on Friday to open the season at Spartan Stadium.
Andrade’s effort symbolized the gritty effort for the Spartans.
Strathmore had to overcome the loss of star workhorse running back Carlos Moreno, who had to leave the game late in the first quarter with what appeared to be a shoulder injury.
Andrade himself was slammed into the metal bench out of bounds several yards from the field on play on the Spartan sideline after making a reception for a short gain. The personal foul against the Rough Riders kept the Spartan drive alive that eventually led to Andrade’s touchdown reception, but SHS was still sputtering somewhat and facing the third and 17 when Andrade made his touchdown catch.
Oats had a huge game to help make up for the loss of Moreno as he completed 11 of 14 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns.
Adrian Sierra also helped pick up the slack for the loss of Moreno with another workmanlike effort that symbolized the Spartans’ night, gaining 57 yards on 17 carries. There was also Bernie Navarro who ran for two key fourth down conversions for SHS.
On the drive that ended with Andrade’s touchdown catch, Navarro kept that drive alive by rushing for 3 yards to the Roosevelt 29 on fourth and one.
Before he had to leave the game, Moreno had rushed for 32 yards on seven carries and had caught a 15-yard TD pass from Oats. Andrade caught six passes for 88 yards and also
had another key 30yard catch and run on third and 24 that eventually led to a Cael Alkire field goal at the end of the half that gave Strathmore a 10-0 halftime lead.
Sierra set the tone for the game, bouncing off a tackle to return the opening kickoff 36 yards to the Spartan 46-yard line. Strathmore marched down to the Roosevelt 15, but fumbled the ball away.
The Spartan defense, though, held, and a bad snap on the punt attempt gave SHS the ball at the Roosevelt 15. On the next play, Oats hit Moreno on a 15-yard scoring pass and Alkire added the extra point to give Strathmore a 7-0 lead.
Andrade stopped Roosevelt’s threat on the ensuing drive when he intercepted a pass inside the Spartan 1. SHS was able to get out of trouble and moved the ball to its own 25, thanks to a 2-yard run by Navarro on fourth and inches.
But Strathmore eventually faced a third and 24 before Andrade took an Oats pass and slipped several tackles on his way to a 30-yard gain. Alkire also had a 17-yard reception on the drive which ended with Alkire nailing a 32-yard field goal as time expired to give SHS a 10-0 halftime lead.
Ulyses Diaz began the second half with a 43-yard run before being caught from behind by Sierra, who made a touchdown saving, shoestring tackle. But Diaz went on to score on a 5-yard run to pull Roosevelt to within 106.
After Andrade’s touchdown catch gave Strathmore a 17-6 lead, Roosevelt drove down to the Spartan 10 but the SHS defense held. Strathmore then proceeded to go a timeconsuming drive and even though the Spartans fumbled the ball away at the Roosevelt 15, the drive put the game away.
MONACHE-GOLDEN WEST CANCELED
Two Visalia Unified School football games in Visalia weren’t played on Friday, including the Monachegolden West game, due to poor air quality and ash that was falling in the area due to wildfires across the state. The Monachegolden West game has been rescheduled for September 3 as both teams originally had a bye on that date.