Tehachapi at Wasco
September 9, 2022
Warrior quarterback Jacob Root #6 looks downfield for a Warrior receiver. Root completed 3 of 5 passes for 56 yards.
Tehachapi won the game 27-20 in Wasco. (Photo by Vicky Shea, The Tehachapi News.)
Posted by The Tehachapi News Sports Staff on September 11, 2022. Warriors Hold On For Impressive Win Over Wasco
Mountain Football jumped out to a three-touchdown lead in the first half en route to a 27-20 victory on the road over Wasco on Friday.
With the win, Tehachapi (4-0) remains undefeated on the year and is one of only three Kern County teams
(Centennial and Shafter being the other two) to have perfect records through four weeks of football.
Wasco (2-1) was coming off a season where they posted a 10-win season and South Sequoia League championship,
including a dominating 50-14 victory over the Warriors in the opener last year for both teams.
This season’s game had a much different feel. Mountain Football came into the game more prepared,
benefiting from a full year on the gridiron and strong off-season conditioning program under their belt.
Tehachapi recorded their first points of the game when Martin Rodriguez recovered a fumble on the
Tigers first snap from scrimmage, setting up a 12-play, 39-yard drive that was capped with a one-yard touchdown run by Mike Jones.
The Warriors would score two more times in the first half, with AJ Anderson racing 50 yards for a touchdown run
and Karson Tiewater recording a nine-yard touchdown reception from Jacob Root. Both Anderson and Tiewater
would be the standouts on offense in the game, with Anderson finishing with 104 yards and two touchdown runs and Tiewater finishing with 85 all-purpose yards,
which included 56 yards on three receptions. Anderson’s rushing mark gives him 626 yards so far this year, good for first place
in rushing yards overall in the CIF Central Section.
On defense, Wyatt Richie finished with a season-high 17 tackles, now putting him in first place overall in the
CIF Central Section with 51 takedowns recorded (20th in tackles in the entire nation). Other strong performances on defense came from Anderson with 12 tackles (interception),
Nick Smith with 10 tackles (nine hurries) and Jones with 10 tackles (sack).
Other contributions came from Raul Navarro with nine tackles (nine hurries), Kaleb Songer with nine tackles,
Adrian Pina with seven tackles (interception), Jacob Betancourt with six tackles (three pass deflections), Tiewater with six tackles,
Chrisitan Morse with six tackles (11 hurries) and Andrew Aguirre with seven hurries.
On special teams, Aguirre had two punts that pinned Wasco deep in their own territory. Both kicks averaged 43 yards
and landing just outside the Tigers endzone. Tiewater also recovered two onside kick attempts by Wasco.
Mountain Football will look to carry their winning ways into another road contest this Friday night at Arvin.
The Bears are coming off a 28-21 defeat against Taft last week.
Junior Varsity
Due to dangerous heat conditions this past week, the junior varsity game was changed to a Thursday evening
kickoff and the freshmen contest was canceled.
The Braves (3-0) were able to remain undefeated on the season after a physical 14-6 victory over Wasco.
Anthony Cerbantez went 2-3 for 42 yards, connecting with Alan Castaneda on a 33-yard completion
and Cyler Hoofard on a nine-yard touchdown completion to highlight the offense.
Leo Gonzalez also had a fourth quarter touchdown run, finishing the game with 36 yards. Wade Brooks was
the leading rusher for the Warriors, ending with 49 yards on the ground.
Defensively, Liddon Scott was the standout performer with 14 tackles and a sack, followed closely by Mason Rothermel
with 12 tackles and a sack. Other leaders were Kaidon Hargerty with 10 tackles, Alex Leon with seven tackles and two sacks and Carter Kolesar
and Aiden Madueno with seven tackles each.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final Tehachapi 7 14 6 0 27 Wasco 0 8 0 12 20
Tehachapi vs Wasco Statistics
THS WHS First Downs 8 Rushes-Yards 37-170 Passing Yards 56 Comp-Att-Int 3-5-1 Total Yards 226 Punts 3-41.0 Penalties 6-40
Individual Statistics:
RUSHING — Wasco: .
Tehachapi: AJ Anderson 13-104, Jones 9-26, Root 3-3, Aguirre 2-5, Trewater 9-29, Richie 1-3.
PASSING — Wasco: . Tehachapi: Root 3-5-56-1.
RECEIVING — Wasco: . Tehachapi: Tiewater 3-56.
Varsity Records: Tehachapi 4-0 Wasco 2-1
