Second half keeps Hawks undefeated
Madera Tribune File Photo Madera’s Jessica Petroff placed third over to lead the Coyote girls cross country team to its first County/Metro Athletic Conference championship Woodward Park.
2014
The Liberty Hawks football team faced its biggest adversity of the season and came through with flying colors after scoring all of its points in the second half of a 34-16 victory over the Kerman Lions.
The Hawks (9-0, 4-0 North Sequoia League) trailed 13 seconds into the game and were trailing 16-0 with 3:14 left in the first quarter.
However, after Jackson Watts scored 2:40 into the second half for the Hawks, the tide turned. When Sawyer Howe hauled in an 8-yard pass from Zach Richey with 2:12 left in the game, the Hawks sewed up the victory and clinch at least a share of the NSL title.
“It’s a sweet win and a big win,” head coach Mike Nolte said. “I’m really proud of the way the kids responded being down at halftime. We came out and drove the ball and scored. It didn’t happen all of the sudden. It was an explosion in the fourth quarter. We had some big plays and drove the ball down to take the lead.”
Despite some first-quarter problems — incomplete passes, dropped passes, three bad snaps — the Liberty defense kept the Hawks in the game. They allowed just 127 yards of total offense and 69 of those yards came during Kerman’s 13-play, 69-yard first quarter drive — the longest sustained drive of the season against the Hawks.
Wade Wallace led the Hawks with 141 yards from scrimmage, including 104 yards rushing. The offense gained 214 yards on the ground and 289 yards of total offense, the lowest output of the season.
Stallions fall a conversion short
FRESNO — When it comes to refereeing a high school football game, officials are trusted to make the best judgment they can on a close call.
In a rainy County/Metro Athletic Conference game, the Stallions lined up for the game-tying two-point conversion attempt after sophomore quarterback Jonah Johnson scored on a five-yard, 4th-and-goal touchdown run that made it 14-12 with 12 seconds left.
On the two-point conversion play, Johnson took the snap, kept the ball and tried to burrow his way into the end zone as he seemingly crossed the goal-line while his teammates celebrated the possibility of going into overtime.
However, the officiating crew ruled he was stopped short of the end zone in a loss to San Joaquin Memorial-Fresno.
2017
Coyotes make quick work of Chieftains
The Madera Coyotes girls water polo showed off its No. 4 seed muscle in the Div. II playoffs with a dominating victory over the 13th seeded Sierra-Tollhouse Chieftains in McAlister Pool.
The Coyotes scored eight goals in the first period and added seven more in the second to cruise to a 22-1 victory. Nine of the 10 players scored for the Coyotes. The only player that didn’t score was goalie Ashley Gibbs, who allowed just one goal and had an easy time in goal.
Maddie McNeill led the Coyotes with five goals. Selynna Rosales and Emily Goertzen scored three each. Bailey Hansen, Lola Gill and Emily Lopez each scored two goals each. Ceaira Chavira, Tara Goertzen and Gabby Ruiz each added a goal.
