Wasco Tigers at Tehachapi
October 11, 2002 @ Tehachapi, CA.
Second-Quarter TD Lifts Tehachapi Past Wasco
Posted Saturday, October 12, 2002, by Scott A. Mayes, Bakersfield Californian
TEHACHAPI -- One of the biggest plays Friday night for the Tehachapi High football team was, of all things, a pass.
The Warriors, who ran the ball 53 times in the game, completed a 1-yard touchdown pass as time expired in the second quarter -- a score that proved to be critical as Tehachapi downed Wasco 17-7 in the South Sequoia League opener for both teams.
Tehachapi improved to 5-0 overall while Wasco fell to 3-2.
The 1-yard strike from quarterback Greg Sanchez to Josh Lange with no time on the clock in the second quarter gave Tehachapi a 14-7 halftime advantage.
Tehachapi, which almost never passes out of its Wing-T offense, got the ball at the Wasco 35-yard line with 1:33 to go in the quarter following a 55-yard punt return by Willie Greenan. Five of the next eight plays were passes. With no timeouts following a 1-yard run by Tanner Hutchinson, the ball was snapped as the clock changed from :02 to :01.
"We knew it was coming," Wasco coach Dan Thiessen said. "We just blew an assignment. Those things happen. Instead of being up, we were down. The second half was a 3-0 game. That's the play that really took it to us."
The gamble could've backfired on Tehachapi coach Steve Denman, who ran the pass play instead of spiking the ball to kill the clock. If Lange didn't come up with the ball, Wasco would have led 7-6 at the break heading into what proved to be a second half dominated by defense.
"We had no other thought (than running the play)," Denman said. "We just wanted to get the job done. The kids did a good job."
During the late second quarter drive, Hutchinson caught a 15-yard pass on a fourth-and-5 play, just one of many impressive plays from the junior running back.
Hutchinson rushed 26 times for 187 yards and scored the game's opening touchdown. Jeremy Clark ran for 49 yards and Tony Troffer ran for another 48. Tehachapi had 290 rushing yards on its 53 carries.
Wasco's offense was quite a bit more balanced. Fred Island ran for 69 yards on 17 carries while Tony Ruiz caught five passes for 64 yards and Marcus Ballard caught one pass for a 71-yard touchdown, the Tigers only score.
"Last week we had a little trouble with the running game, but every other game the offensive line has opened big holes," Hutchinson said. "They did a great job tonight and the holes were always there."
Tehachapi took the opening possession 78 yards in 11 plays, accounting for the only points of the first quarter with a 6-0 lead.
Hutchinson scored on a two-yard run up the middle, but the PAT sailed left with 7:19 remaining in the first quarter. Hutchinson rushed for 58 yards on seven carries on the drive, four of the carries picking up first downs.
Wasco went ahead 7-6 with 8:56 to go in the second quarter. Quarterback Simon Loewen hit Marcus Ballard in stride on a 71-yard touchdown reception. Ballard beat out the Warriors' free safety for the helmet-high pass and sprinted untouched to the end zone.
But the Warriors went to the locker room at the half with a 14-7 lead, thanks to the last-second touchdown. After the Lange catch, Sanchez then hit tight end Josh Christy with another pass for the 2-point conversion.
Wasco had reached the Warriors' 26-yard line with less than five minutes to go in the game when Bob DiRado intercepted Loewen. A.J. Barcelona applied the pressure on Loewen as he released the errant pass.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Tehachapi 6 8 3 0 17 Wasco 0 7 0 0 07
The Scoring:
First quarter
T--Hutchinson 2 run (kick failed)
Second quarter
W--M. Ballard 71 pass from Loewen (kick good)
T--Lange 1 pass from Sanchez (Christy pass from Sanchez)
Third quarter
T--Sullivan 31 FG
WASCO vs THS GAME STATISTICS
WHS THS First Downs 10 18 Rushes-Yards 25-109 53-290 Passing Yards 155 32 Comp-Att-Int 7-22-1 6-8-0 Total Yards 264 322 Punts 7-38.8 4-28.0 Fumbles-Lost 1-0 2-1 Penalties 8-66 6-40
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS:
RUSHING: Wasco: Island 17-69, Gonzalez 3-31, Loewen 2-4, McCurdy 2-3, Ruiz 1-2. Tehachapi: Hutchinson 26-187, Clark 10-49, Troffer 10-48, Lange 4-13, Sanchez 3(-7).
PASSING: Wasco: Loewen 7-22-1-155. Tehachapi: Sanchez 6-8-0-32.
RECEIVING: Wasco: Ruiz 5-64, M. Ballard 1-71, C. Ballard 1-20. Tehachapi: Hutchinson 1-15, Altieri 1-12, Troffer 1-4, Greenan 1-1, Lange 1-1, Christy 1-(-1).
Records--Wasco 3-2, 0-1 SSL; Tehachapi 5-0, 1-0 SSL.
JV--Tehachapi 6, Wasco 0
