- The Bears defense forced five turnovers including four interceptions and a fumble recovery.
- The Bears are 2-0 in the CCC after outscoring their opponents 116-7.
- The Cougars fall to fourth place in the CCC standings.
Since 1994, the Mayor’s Cup has been a rivalry game that Merced and Golden Valley look forward to each season. With the two schools sharing the same city, the annual matchup brings an added level of competition as both teams look to claim the Mayor’s Cup. However, Merced has held the advantage in recent years, winning the Mayor’s Cup every year since 2006. Friday night’s matchup gave the Bears another opportunity to keep that streak alive while Golden Valley looked to change the history between the two programs.
Merced opened the game with a 25-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Raul Diaz Moreno IV to Christian Jackson, putting the Bears ahead 7-0. The Bears quickly added to their lead after Jake Hinman intercepted a Golden Valley pass, giving Merced possession at the Cougars’ 9-yard line. Moreno connected with tight end Charles Polk for another touchdown, extending the lead to 13-0 by the end of the first quarter.
Golden Valley responded early in the second quarter with a touchdown pass to Jaren Bell, followed by a successful extra point to cut the deficit to 13-7. However, Merced answered after Anthony Tacheira intercepted a Golden Valley pass. This time, Moreno found Israel Rodas for a 38-yard touchdown. Before the end of the half, Tacheira added a five-yard rushing touchdown to extend the Bears’ lead to 27-7 as they headed into halftime.
Turnovers killed the Cougars’ offensive momentum all night. The Bears intercepted Cougars quarterback Gabriel Richards four times throughout the night. Golden Valley running back Isaiah Welch also lost a fumble in the beginning of the second half.
“We trained all week for this,” Bears defensive end Demari Washington said. “We just put in the work every day to come do this.”
Merced continued to pull away in the fourth quarter. Isaiah Morales intercepted a Golden Valley pass in the end zone before Douglas Andrews broke free for an 80-yard rushing touchdown. Brody Dabney added a 65-yard rushing touchdown to bring the score to 55-7. The Bears held on through the final seconds, securing another win over the Cougars and extending their Mayor’s Cup winning streak to 21 consecutive years.
Demari Washington credited the Bears’ success to the relationships between teammates explaining, “We’re just always together. After, before practice, during school, we’re always together, building chemistry day by day.” That connection, along with the team’s confidence, has helped shape the Bears’ approach to each matchup. “We’re always gonna come through,” Washington said.
With the win, Merced improved to 5-2 overall and will host Los Banos on Friday, October 23, for its next league matchup. Golden Valley fell to 3-4 and will travel to Buhach Colony on the same night as both teams continue league play.
- Photos by Grace Gallegos. ↩︎
