Tehachapi at Washington Union (Fresno)
Friday, November 21, 2003
Tehachapi’s Josh Lange drags Washington Union's Mark Pestorich into the end zone as he scores his team’s second touchdown on Friday at Washington Union. Photo by the Bakersfield Californian.
Warriors Take Down Undefeated Panthers
EASTON -- A vocal contingent of Tehachapi High football fans began chanting, "Warriors," with two minutes left in fourth-seeded Tehachapi's 27-13 upset of No. 1 seed Washington Union in the Central Section Sequoia Division Large School semifinals on Friday night.
The cheering began when Jeremy Clark of Tehachapi intercepted Washington quarterback Mike Garza at the Washington 35-yard line to seal the Warriors' shocking road win over the previously undefeated Panthers.
"It feels great," an elated Tanner Hutchinson said on the field after the game, surrounded by well-wishers. "I can't explain it."
Hutchinson rushed for 282 yards and two touchdowns on 43 carries to help lead the Warriors to their seventh straight victory.
Tehachapi (9-3), whose three losses have come against Clovis East, Burroughs and Delano, shredded the Panthers defense by rushing for 393 yards on 65 carries -- an average of six yards per carry. The Warriors only attempted five passes.
"They ran the ball well, especially in the first half," Washington coach Jeff Freitas said. "We had a hard time stopping it."
The Warriors' defense also played well, holding Washington's dynamic offense to 216 total yards and only 40 rushing yards. Tehachapi had two interceptions and sacked Garza four times.
"This is a great victory for us," Tehachapi coach Steve Denman said. "Anytime you can beat an 11-0 team on their own turf, that's pretty good."
Washington (11-1) trailed 20-7 at the half, but pulled within 20-13 with four minutes left in the third quarter and appeared poised for a comeback.
But the Panthers turned the ball over on downs, punted and threw an interception on their final three drives.
"We weren't able to pull it out tonight," Freitas said.
"That's what we did early in the year was come back and win games. But we weren't able to get it done tonight.
"They were just a little better than us tonight."
Hutchinson put the finishing touches on the victory by refusing to go down on a 19-yard TD run with 2:11 remaining, which provided the game's final score after a Kris Haycock extra point.
"Our line is opening up the holes," Hutchinson said of his stellar performance running the ball.
Hutchinson had 142 yards on 22 first-half carries.
A week ago he rushed for 266 yards and six touchdowns on 16 carries in Tehachapi's 55-22 first-round playoff victory over Selma.
Washington pulled within 20-13 on an Evan Christin 2-yard TD run late in the third quarter. Tehachapi's Anthony Scott blocked the extra point.
The Panthers drove 91 yards in 10 plays and four minutes after Tehachapi turned the ball over on downs inside the Washington 10 on an incomplete pass on fourth down.
Tehachapi turned the ball over on downs for the second straight possession inside Washington's 10-yard line on its second time with the ball in the third quarter, giving the Panthers hope.
"They played good defense," Denman said of Washington. "They had two goal-line stands on us."
After throwing the ball on its previous fourth down play, Tehachapi tried to run the ball down Washington's throats on its second fourth down attempt.
But Josh Lange was stuffed on a fourth and goal run up the middle from the Washington 1.
The Warriors outscored Washington 20-0 in the second quarter to take charge of the game.
Hutchinson dove over the middle of the line on a 2-yard TD run to give Tehachapi a 20-7 halftime lead with 26 seconds left in the half. Kris Haycock missed the extra point, leaving the underdog Warriors ahead by 13 points at the break.
Lange scored on a 7-yard run and Kris Haycock added the extra point to give Tehachapi a 14-7 advantage with 7:38 left in the first half.
Tehachapi marched 70 yards on just six plays, aided by a 32-yard scamper by Hutchinson down the left sideline. All six plays on the drive were runs. The drive was set up when Zack Harris intercepted Garza.
The Warriors tied the game at 7 when Dan Haycock bulled his way into the end zone from a yard out and Kris Haycock added the extra point two minutes into the second quarter.
Christin plunged in from a yard out to give Washington a 7-0 lead after a Garza extra point on the game's opening drive.
The score was set up by a 34-yard pass from Garza to a wide-open Daniel Mendoza on third and 16 all the way down to the Tehachapi 4.
But the opening drive was one of just a few things that went wrong for the Warriors on Friday night.
The only thing missing from Tehachapi's outstanding season is a section championship -- something the Warriors can pick up next week.
"We're on a roll," Hutchinson said.
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final | |
| Tehachapi | 0 | 20 | 0 | 7 | 27 |
| Washington | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
Scoring Summary
1st Quarter:
Wash -- Christin 1 run (Garza kick)
2nd Quarter:
Teh -- Haycock 1 run (K. Haycock kick)
Teh -- Lange 8 run (K. Haycock kick)
Teh -- Hutchinson 3 run (kick failed)
3rd Quarter:
Wash -- Christin 3 run (kick failed)
4th Quarter:
Teh -- Hutchinson 19 run (K. Haycock kick)
| THS | WHS | |
| First Downs | 19 | 10 |
| Rushes-Yards | 61-411 | 25-68 |
| Passing Yards | 49 | 237 |
| Comp-Att-Int | 2-5-0 | 12-17-2 |
| Total Yards | 460 | 305 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| Penalties | 4-25 | 3-15 |
Individual Statistics:
RUSHING -- Washington: Christin 15-107, Pacheco 1-1, McCray 2-6, Garza 7-(-46).
Tehachapi: Hutchinson 43-282, Lange 14-101, D. Haycock 2-10, R. Wright 1-4, Clark 2-15.
PASSING -- Washington: Garza 12-17-2-237. Tehachapi: K. Haycock 2-5-0-49.
RECEIVING -- Washington: McCray 5-120, Christin 3-33, Pacheco 2-48, Mendoza 1-34, Crunk 1-2. Tehachapi: Dan Haycock 2-49.
Records--Washington 11-1, Tehachapi 9-3.