By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Bulletin correspondent

PATTERSON — The East Union Lancers’ season came to an end Friday night, as they were defeated 38-22 by the Patterson Tigers in Sac-Joaquin Division IV quarterfinal action.

The 10-seeded Lancers, fresh off of a hard fought 21-14 battle at 7-seed Nevada Union to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since 2021, knew the competition in Patterson would be ratcheted up even more. The two teams played earlier in the season at Dino Cunial Field, a 53-50 victory by the visiting Tigers.

“Patterson has a highly explosive offense, and we weren’t able to execute fully on both sides of the football tonight, and unfortunately the scoreboard showed that,” Sierra coach Booie Daniels.

Daniels and the Lancers (6-6) knew they would need to score early and often to keep up with the Tigers, who finished as Division IV runners-up last year with a one-point loss to Escalon.

East Union’s tendency to start slow again reared its head early in Friday’s game. After receiving the opening kickoff and going three-and-out, the Lancers gave the ball to the Tigers on a short field. Eight plays later, Patterson junior quarterback standout Max Medina connected with wide receiver Noah Cozart on what would be his first of four touchdown passes on the evening, putting the home team up 7-0.

Another three-and-out on the ensuing possession gave the ball right back the Tigers, who this time needed just seven plays to go 63-yards for the second touchdown of the night. Medina evaded Lancer defenders rolling left and found wide receiver Jeremiah Lugo in the back of the end zone to put Patterson (6-5) up 14-0 late in the first quarter.

“We started off slow,” Daniels said. “The plays were open, but we made some late reads. Unfortunately, the ball didn’t go our way. They were able to force us to go three-and-out and on those change of possessions went down and scored. That was a huge factor early.”

Medina finished the night 18-of-23 with 243 yards passing, most of it coming in a first half that showed Patterson doing what they wanted through the air. The junior signal caller credited his offensive line for the success.

“Up front is everything for us. They set the tone with the intensity and really got it going for us for sure,” Medina said.

A third stalled drive of the opening half for the Lancers was followed up by Medina finding his favorite target Cozart deep for a 39-yard touchdown pass to put Patterson up 21-0 just 3 minutes of game time later. Medina seemed to be in perfect sync with his entire receiving corps, but especially Cozart, who tallied five receptions for 80 yards and two touchdowns.

“We’ve been playing this way since pee-wee football,” Medina said of his connection with Cozart. “We come out and work hard in the offseason. He sees things the way a quarterback sees them, and its awesome having him out there with me.”

East Union showed fight and resolve late in the second quarter. Senior quarterback Anthony Morales led the Lancers on a 12-play, 80-yard drive with his arm and his legs, ultimately finding the end zone on a sneak from two yards out to put visitors on the scoreboard with 3:53 to play in the first half.

The defense for the Lancers’ inability to get off of the field on third down proved to bite them yet again before the break, with Medina scrambling around in the backfield before throwing a touchdown pass that was nearly intercepted by senior two-way standout Blake Mount. The true 50-50 ball was wrestled away in the end zone by wide receiver Romeo Manu to extend the lead for Patterson to 28-7 going into halftime.

While Medina found success through the air, East Union was able to hold Patterson’s ground game largely in check throughout the night.

“I know what kind of heart our kids have. Up front we have made drastic improvements since that Sierra game, and for our D-Line to come out and pretty much stop the run game while being drastically over-sized by Patterson was huge,” Daniels said.

Midway through the third quarter trailing 35-7, the Lancers showed their fans that there is plenty to be excited about next season. Junior wide receiver Jackson Fay took a screen pass from Morales 64 yards down the sideline for the team’s second touchdown of the night. Fay, who finished the night with three receptions for 85 yards and that long score, will surely be a focal point for Daniels’ Lancers in 2025.

“We’re a very junior-heavy team,” said Daniels. “I am excited for what the future has for us, and for us to come out and compete into the second round of the playoffs with the group of guys we have is something I am extremely proud of, and certainly something to build off of.”

Coach Daniels was extremely complimentary of his group of seniors, led by the three-year varsity letterman Mount.

“We were so happy Blake made the last minute decision to come back and join us from Tennessee,” Daniels said. “Obviously, a huge asset on both sides of the ball. The kid is an athlete, and I hope he goes on to play at the next level.”

The senior wide receiver/linebacker reflected on his time at East Union after the game.

“I build a family here,” said Mount. “It was probably the greatest four years of my life. I’ve had a real bond with my teammates, and its something you really just cant find anywhere else.”

Mount’s senior teammate running back Cesar Salinas put the finishing touches on his high school career in the final drive of the evening, amassing for 67 yards on the ground before catching a 10-yard touchdown pass from Morales with 34 seconds left in the game to cut the final score to 38-22.

Coach Daniels spoke to what it meant to him to get Salinas on the board.

“Coming off of an injury, he was hurt the last time we played these guys. He’s worked so hard coming back it was important to me he found the end zone there late,” said Daniels.

The Tigers will host Sacramento in a Section semifinal match-up next week at Patterson Community Stadium.