Defense was the best offense for East Union on Thursday when it wrapped up regular-season play with an 18-0 win over visiting rival Manteca at Dino Cunial Field.
Caliyah Lopez came up with two interceptions, broke up three passes and put the game away with two touchdowns in the final 2 minutes. Larissa Harries also picked off two passes for the Lancers.
“We’ve been working really hard on our defense,” Lopez said. “We’ve come a long way, as this is our first year. Everything is so new to us, but we’ve been trying to new things. I’m just extremely proud of all the girls. We just continue to get better every single day.”
The shifty junior led the offense with eight receptions for 63 yards and an additional 23 yards on six rushes.
The Lancers (10-2, 16-4 overall) have a bye in the final week of the Valley Oak League schedule but have clinched one of three automatic playoff berths. They still have a shot at earning a piece of the league title next week if Sierra drops either of its two games against Oakdale.
“It was senior night, so there’s a lot of emotions,” EU coach Steve Jackson said. “We’re a dealing with a lot of firsts, so sometimes the focus is gone. We were able to accomplish what we wanted with the win, and now we’re able to rest up, get after it in practice and get ready for the playoffs, which was our goal coming in.”
All of East Union’s touchdowns were set up by turnovers.
The offense had an interception and three consecutive punts in its first four series, but the Lancers were sparked by Harries’ interception near midfield. East Union took advantage, scoring two plays later with Gwen Baker’s 38-yard touchdown reception, which was made possible by quarterback Julianna Gaspar’s scrambling ability.
The Lancers were unable to build on that momentum, however.
“The defense did awesome,” Manteca coach Priscilla Riddick said. “They stayed in their zones, they did their job and they made sure that they were communicating well with each other. The best part was that they never gave up. They kept playing at 100% 100% of the time.”
Kashea Reese highlighted the Buffaloes’ defense with two interceptions. Chantel Rosillo racked up a game-high seven tackles, and Rylan Steckler secured the only sack of the contest.
Manteca (6-4, 10-12 had its best shot at scoring on the first drive of the second half. Running back Audry Villanueva (three rushes, 45 yards) got the Buffs into scoring position with a 33-yard run, but the series stalled out on the East Union 17-yard line after four straight incomplete passes — two of them knocked away by Lopez near the goal line.
“I just watch the QB, Lopez said. “Most QBs give it away, so you just have to watch them and want to go after that ball no matter what. I’m not the biggest, but I’m still going to go up for it.”
She grabbed her first interception with just under 14 minutes remaining. East Union was able to get to the Manteca 5-yard line but could not pad its lead. Two penalties set the offense back on the drive.
Harries later garnered her second pick, which led to Lopez’s 5-yard touchdown reception and some needed breathing room for EU. The series was keyed by Gaspar’s 13-yard pass to Ava Barrera on fourth-and-7.
“It was such a relief,” Lopez said of the touchdown, which stretched the Lancers’ lead to 12-0 with 1:49 to go. “We were back and forth the entire game. I’m really proud of our QB. She reads the field extremely well. She sees us when we’re open, and she got us there today.”
The Lancers regained possession just moments later, as Lopez leaped vertically snag her second pick of the night on a deep ball. She got to the end zone again on a 2-yard catch as time expired.
Gaspar finished 16-of33 passing for 176 yards, three TDs and two interceptions. She also ran for 32 yards on five attempts.
Manteca was limited to just 52 passing yards and 65 rushing.
“We’ve been really impressed the last two or three weeks with the way the defense has been stepping up,” Jackson said. “Offensively, Manteca defensively was able to take some things away. We were able to squeak it out.”
The Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs begin on Oct. 29.
Manteca will battle for the third available automatic playoff berth with Patterson next week. The two-game set begins Tuesday at East Union, where the Buffaloes will host the senior night game.
