Friday night at Merced College’s Stadium 76 brought an energetic atmosphere as local rivals Merced High and El Capitan High competed in a highly anticipated hometown matchup. The stands were filled with students, families, and fans trading chants and cheers, adding to the rivalry the entirety of the game. El Capitan made an early statement on their very first play with a trick-play double pass, connecting with #2 Jayden Scott for a 70-yard touchdown, but Merced quickly took control, scoring repeatedly and finishing out the game with a 63–6 victory.
Merced erased any momentum the Gauchos had built up from the opening play. The Bears responded with a string of big plays each time they possessed the ball, including touchdowns from Cammarri Jackson, Dougie Andrews, and Israel Rodas, stretching their lead to 28-6 by halftime. At the start of the second half, the Bears returned the opening kickoff, which set the tone for the rest of the half. El Capitan struggled to make tackles, and Merced capitalized on this by gashing the Gauchos on the ground with quarterback Vicente Cortez and running backs Jackson and Andrews. “They couldn’t stop us; we could stop them. We won every battle in that game,” said Merced High linebacker Tyson Espinoza. Merced picked up several holding penalties on big plays, but the penalties didn’t slow down the Bears. They didn’t punt the ball all night and scored each time they possessed the ball. In the fourth quarter, Merced’s dominance continued on both sides of the ball, adding a late 41-yard touchdown run before letting the clock run out and securing the 63–6 victory.
Although he’s now playing for Merced, Espinoza spent his freshman and sophomore seasons on the El Capitan football team. Espinoza sat out this game due to an intense injury to his finger from the past home game against Golden Valley but says he will be returning for the next game. When asked about his previous history with the El Capitan football team, Espinoza stated, “I really feel for the team; this team has been going uphill.”
The Bears continue to remain undefeated with their record now being 8-0, while the Gauchos drop to a 3-5 record. Merced will face the Atwater Falcons at home next week, while El Capitan travels to Atwater to take on Buhach Colony.
