Sports: Tehachapi News

AYSO Soccer season ends with a flash

Saturday Nov. 1, was the last day of the scheduled soccer games at the "Leroy White Soccer Fields" located in the Benz-Visco Sports Park on Willow Springs Road.

Unfortunately all of Saturdays games were canceled due to rain, wind and lightning.
Regional Commissioner John Buckly said "We just can't take any chances with kids on the fields during thunder storm conditions. We usually play during rain or bad weather, but after seeing lightning several times this morning, we had no choice, but to cancel the games.”

And so ends the soccer season in Tehachapi, but there will be an AYSO sectional playoff tournament held at the Kern County Soccer Park in Bakersfield next month. Several of our local boys and girls teams from U-10, U-12, and U-14 divisions will participate.

Previously, on Saturday, Oct. 4, our local AYSO Regen held a fundraiser on behalf of the new snack bar building fund. The benefit was held to raise money to complete the interior of the building and try to have the new snack bar in operation by next season. A Tri-Tip sandwich meal was sold for $5 each. The meals were prepared and served by board members and volunteers under the direction of Barbra and David Shaw. The event was an overwhelming success. All sandwiches and meals were sold out and the proceeds delivered to the snack bar fund.

A special thanks goes out to Paul and Joan Benz and the Benz Corp.
They generously donated the Tri-Tip for our sale.

Indians trounce Bears in season finale

Rebounding from last week’s close loss to Wasco, the Indians returned to form by combining a powerful running attack and stingy defense to defeat the Arvin Bears, 28-13.

Arvin scored on the opening kick-off with an 85-yard return, but the Indians quickly evened the score on their next series by taking the first play from scrimmage all the way to the endzone with a buck sweep down the right side. Guards David Lara and Jack Blewett pulled to the right and paved the way for running back Marcus Curiel, who quickly took advantage of his blockers to outrun the Arvin defense 79 yards to the end zone. Luke Henderson kicked the field goal to tie the game at 7-7.

With just over nine minutes still remaining in the first quarter, the defense rose to the occasion by forcing Arvin to punt twice. Arvin lost yardage on six plays, culminating with a sack for an eight-yard loss by Justin Hedburg on third and 10.

After a trade of possessions, the Indians regained control with just over two minutes remaining in the first quarter.

Starting at their 42 yard line, the Indians quickly moved into Bear country behind a four-yard run by Curiel and an 18-yard run by Gabe Saavedra. On first down at the Arvin 36, Alec Johnson completed an 11 yard pass to Joey Lopez, then Marcus Curiel ran nine-yards on the next play to the Arvin 16. Johnson again took to the air and completed the 16-yard pass to tight end Cody Hall for the touchdown.

Henderson again connected on the extra point to give the Indians a 14-7 first quarter lead.

The bleeding continued for Arvin, facing a fourth and 21 on their next possession after a Saavedra tackle for loss and a David Lara sack. The Bears attempted to punt, but Lara blocked the kick and Blewett recovered the ball at the Bear 17 yard line.

The Indians moved the ball to near the goal line on a 12 yard run by Curiel, then on first and goal from the five, Saavedra pounded his way into the end zone for the two-score advantage.

On the ensuing Arvin possession, Jack Blewett intercepted a pass at the 37 and returned the ball to the Arvin 25 to set up the final scoring drive of the afternoon for Tehachapi.

After two short running plays, the Indians handed off to Wyatt Vance, who ran 21 yards to for the touchdown. Brian Castaneda bulled his way into the end zone for the two-point conversion to give the Indians a commanding 28-7 lead.

In the game overall, Marcus Curiel led the team with 101 yards rushing on five carries and a touchdown.

The Indians finish an outstanding season with an 8-2 record (4-1 SSL), while providing a tremendous amount of promise for the future of Mountain Football.

Mountain Football runs through Arvin

Although local meteorologists were reporting clear skies, the weather report forgot to account for a heavy dose of thunder and lightning in Tehachapi last Friday night.

Adam Mullen and Josh Strauss, thanks to stellar running lanes paved by the wing-t offensive line, both accounted for 310 yards combined and three touchdowns to help Tehachapi win a close contest over Arvin, 24-18.

Mullen had a season-high 236 yards and two touchdowns overall, while Josh Strauss became only the sixth running back in Mountain Football history to go over the 3,000 yard rushing mark in more than one season of play.

Strauss, who now has 3,040 yards rushing all-time, joined a prestigious group of backs that include Tanner Hutchinson (3,141), Eric Young (3,188), Anthony Kelly (3,601) and Kurt Leibengood (3,794).

Tehachapi (6-4; 4-1 SSL) also got a strong game from Jesse Olofson, who had two first-down runs in the game and 24 yards overall, while Matt Bloom hauled in a 15-yard pass from Kurtis Knudson.

On special teams, Jake Reimer was impressive in the kicking game, booting home a 31-yard field goal while also connecting on a 36-yard extra point after an enforced penalty.

The Warriors, who received the #6 seed in the CIF Central Section Division III playoffs, will have a home game against #11 seed Ridgeview at Coy Burnett Stadium at 7pm this Friday night.

Should Tehachapi win, they will be on the road next Friday at #3 seeded Golden Valley (Bakersfield).

For complete playoff bracket information, log on to thswarriors.com.

Junior Varsity
With the league championship already locked up, the only goal left to attain for the Braves was finishing the league season undefeated.

Tehachapi (8-2; 5-0 SSL) was able to do just that in a 13-6 win over Arvin, thanks to 170 yards rushing on 23 carries by Michael Lowder, and 71 yards on the ground from Evan Fassbender. Lowder finished the season as the Braves leading rusher with 1,275 yards on 168 carries and 15 touchdowns.

Fassbender recorded the first touchdown for Tehachapi on a one-yard run in the third quarter, set up by a 53-yard run by Lowder to the redzone. Dallas Scaggs connected on the extra point.

Other strong games came from Kash Knudson, who recorded a touchdown on a six-yard jaunt in the fourth quarter, finishing with 56 yards on seven attempts.
On defense, Adam Bullard, Zach Timm, Cory Lange, Cameron King and Travis Farewell had multiple-tackle games.

Lady Warriors outmatch Madera-South

Mountain Volleyball got their post-season run off with authority last Thursday night, overtaking #6 seeded Madera-South (25-9, 25-22, 25-20) to punch their ticket to the section semifinals this Tuesday against Ridgeview.

With the win, Tehachapi (32-4) now has the distinction of the most overall wins ever amassed by a team in the South Sequoia League, leap frogging over 2006 state champion Bakersfield Christian, who finished with a 31-9-1 overall record that year.

In the win over Madera-South (20-12-1), Sarah Horcher and Paige Woodward led with eight and five kills respectively, while Aly Pulford was tops in assists with 13.
Shelby Flick recorded a game-high 15 digs, while Sam Nunnally had nine digs and Jami Lankin six digs.

The regular season officially concluded two weeks ago for the Lady Warriors with two strong wins over Taft (25-21, 25-16, 25-13) and Shafter (25-14, 25-14, 27-25).
Against Taft, Sarah Horcher (9), Jasmine Julye (9), Paige Woodward (6), Kelsey Kapitzke (6) and Sarah Carpenetti (5) were leaders in kills, while Woodward chipped in with five aces and 15 assists.

Aly Pulford and Shelby Flick had 12 and 11 assists apiece, while Lankin was tops in digs with 18 and aces with four.

The Shafter win was led by Persephonie Devereaux’s 10 blocks. Jasmine Julye had seven blocks and 11 kills, while Sarah Horcher (10) and Persephonie Devereaux (9) also had multiple stuffs.

Aly Pulford and Paige Woodward combined for 24 assists, while dig leaders Jaime Lankin (7), Persephonie Devereaux (5) and Paige Woodward (5) kept points alive.

Tehachapi will be facing #2 seeded Ridgeview this Tuesday in Bakersfield at 7pm. The school is on 8501 Stine Road in (between Taft Highway 119 and Panama Lane).

Mountain Volleyball strongly encourages the entire town and student body to mark their calendar and attend.

Mountain Volleyball playoffs this Thursday

Mountain Volleyball playoffs this Thursday

The Tehachapi Lady Warrior Volleyball team will be in CIF Division III
quarterfinal action this Thursday at the THS gym. Come root on the Lady
Warriors to victory this Thursday night!

WHO: #3 Tehachapi (31-4) vs. the winner of #11 Clovis-North (9-16) / #6
Madera South.(19-11-1)
WHAT: CIF Division III Central Section Quarterfinals
WHEN: 7pm
WHERE: Tehachapi High School Gym

Lady Warriors pull near upset

While many may have predicted Tehachapi dispatching Arvin (25-13, 25-14, 25-20) this past week in SSL play, the game that turned many heads and sent tremors in the upcoming Division III playoffs was the Lady Warriors near-shocking upset of central section powerhouse Bakersfield Christian, losing in five (25-23, 25-21, 13-25, 19-25, 4-15).

No league team this season has tested Bakersfield Christian (19-4; 8-0 SSL), or pushed them to the limit in their home gym, as much the Lady Warriors did this past week.

By taking the first two games and nearly pulling off the monumental upset, Tehachapi (29-4; 6-2 SSL) might have laid a firm claim for at least the no.2 seed in the Division III playoffs next week, possibly even a no.1 seed depending on the ranking committee’s determination.

Chloe Podratz led the team in points with 10 against Arvin, followed by Sam Nunnally (9) and Aly Pulford (8). Sarah Horcher was tops in kills with nine, with Paige Woodward (6), Jasmine Julye (5) and Kelsey Kapitzke (4) turning in solid games. Devereaux and Julye both had four blocks each, while Nunnally and Woodward both had a team leading four digs apiece.

Against the Eagles, Shelby Flick led Tehachapi in points with 11, followed by Sam Nunnally (8), and Sarah Horcher (7). Horcher was tops in kills with 11, followed by Paige Woodward (8), Sarah Carpenetti (6), and Jasmine Julye (5), while Julye also had 10 blocks and Persephonie Devereaux 12 blocks on the night.

Tehachapi, who now holds the distinction of the most wins in one season of Mountain Volleyball, will have an opportunity to post their first-ever 30 win season this week in two final league games. The Lady Warriors will compete against Taft at home Tuesday and at Shafter on the road Thursday. Both games will begin at 6:15pm.

Tehachapi Starlings to have open try-outs Girls ages 10-18 are encouraged to join club volleyball

The Tehachapi Starlings Volleyball Club will be starting up a new season with tryouts on Sunday, Nov-16 at the Jacobsen Middle School gym.

All girls from ages 10-18 that are interested in volleyball are encouraged to come to the open tryout. The Starlings will have three teams for the upcoming year, 14s, 16s, and 18s, headed by some of the most talented volleyball minds in East Kern County.

The 14s will be coached by Leanna Delgadillo, who has a wealth of experience coaching at the middle school level and is a well-respected volleyball mind in the area. The 16s will be coached by Renn Amstead, who has 39 years of teaching expertise including junior college and high school coaching experience in Orange County and THS. The 18s will be headed by Jill Riddle, who is a THS alumni and former collegiate volleyball athlete.

The club will be competing for five months, participating in 11 tournaments from January to May, including the possibility of hosting a tournament in April.

Heading up the Starlings program in Tehachapi is club president Brian Borst.

“There are some new and exciting opportunities for club volleyball this season and I'm looking forward to being a part of it,” said Borst on the Starlings website. “If there are girls out in Tehachapi that want to be a part of a club that has fun, plays competitively as a team, and helps develop your volleyball skills then the Starlings are for you.

Open-tryouts for the Starlings on Nov-16 will be at 2pm (14s), 4pm (16s), and 6pm (18s)

“We would like to say a big thank you to Charles and Joyce Horcher for their years of tireless work and dedication in developing Tehachapi Starlings,” added Borst. “Since its inception, over 200 girls have received collegiate volleyball scholarships through this organization and we’re excited to be apart of it again.”

Last season at nationals, the Starlings 14s and 16s both took fifth place out of a field of 80 teams across the nation.

For more info, log on to tehachapistarlings.shutterfly.com.

Sports Shorts

Tennis in Playoffs this week
The Lady Warriors have been given the no.3 seed in the CIF Central Section Division III playoff draw, and will play at no.2 Porterville this Tuesday (Nov-4) in the semi-finals. If Mountain Tennis pulls the upset, they will play for the CIF championship on Thursday between the winner of no.1 Hanford West and no.4 Highland.

Times of both matches will begin at 3:30pm.
In the recent SSL championship finals, Chelsea Maduena defeated an opponent from Shafter (6-0, 6-0), while Katja Thacker took fourth place overall by taking down a Shafter opponent (6-0, 6-1). In doubles, Abby Croy and Hannah Trott secured third place with a pair of victories over Taft doubles squads (6-1, 6-0 and 6-4, 6-0) . Bailey Hutchinson and Desiree Ortiz also qualified to participate in the league tournament.
Thacker, Croy and Trott all qualified for the CIF individual championships with their fourth and third place finishes.

Cross Country competes at Mt. Sac
THS cross country traveled to Mt. Sac to compete in the largest cross country meet in the United States this past week. The Warriors competed in eight divisions and in the high school events alone, there were 110 races and over 300 high schools participating

Corey Torres (18:40) started the day off by finishing seventh overall and medaling for THS. In the second division run, Amanda Duke (26:28) was top Lady Warrior and was followed by Erin Golackson (26:55).
In the freshman division, Charles Hansen (19:42) was the top THS runner, giving him the fifth fastest time ever recorded by a THS freshman. Travis Carr (21:46) finished second for THS.

A.J. Snider (26:45) finished as top Lady Brave in the girls frosh division, and in the sophomore division Journey McDaell (21:42) led the way for the Braves. Sophomores Danielle Tildahl (24:23) and Rachel Evans (24:36) were THS top ladies and recorded the two fastest times ever posted by sophomores and two of the top ten times ever finished in THS history.

For the varsity men, Adam Moreno (18:16) and Nathan Rowe (19:01) were the top runners for Tehachapi. The varsity women finished the day with Susie Cuevas (26:21) turning in the top Lady Warriors time.
Tehachapi finished as high as 10th in four of the eight divisions. Next up is the Kern County Championships and then the SSL finals on Wednesday November 5th in Wasco.

Warriors throttle Wildcats 41-13 for first win at Taft since '99

Midway through the fourth quarter, a fan in the visiting stands bellowed out a loud "Welcome back, Warriors!", followed in suit by a cascade of cheers from the Mountain Football faithful.

Tehachapi is indeed back, and proved that point in a resounding way with a 41-13 thumping over Taft behind a big play running attack that netted 380 yards and a relentless defense.

"You have to give it up to the o-line," said Warrior back Adam Mullen. "They created the holes and fakes for us, we were able to switch it up and get through. This win means a lot for us, it's exciting."

Mullen ran wild all night against the 'Cats, recording four total touchdowns and 223 yards on offense and special teams. Josh Strauss also had a stellar night, recording 188 yards on 11 carries, including two scores of 63 and 73 yards.

On defense, Tehachapi (4-4; 2-1 SSL) gave up only 114 yards rushing against a Taft (6-2; 2-1 SSL) offense that was averaging 228 a game coming into the SSL contest, while also recording six sacks overall and three punt blocks.

The Warrior wing-t scored on six of eight possessions on the night, thanks in part to a pair of big receptions by Garrett Coontz, who hauled in a 17 yard grab in the first half on third and 13 and another big nine-yard fourth down reception in the third quarter to keep a Warrior drive alive.

With the victory, Mountain Football put themselves back in the SSL title race, but will need Taft to knock off Bakersfield Christian in week 10, along with strong performances the next two weeks against Wasco and Arvin, to have a chance at a share of the league crown.

"There is still much to be decided, but our kids kept up the intensity from start to finish and they did a tremendous job," said Warrior head coach Steve Denman. "It was a great win for us and we have to keep this momentum going week to week."

The Warriors will face off with Wasco this Friday night at 7:30pm.

Junior Varsity
It was another day at the office for talented running back Michael Lowder, who took 23 carries for 216 yards and three scores to help Tehachapi (6-2; 3-0 SSL) set up a league title showdown with Wasco this Friday afternoon.

Evan Fassbender contributed with 12 carries for 50 yards, while Kash Knudson had seven attempts for 33 yards to help Tehachapi to a rushing mark of 317 overall.
On defense, Cameron King led all Braves with six tackles, followed by Zach Timm with four tackles, a punt block, and a fumble recovery. Adam Bullard, Travis Farewell, Tanner Etherton, Tyler Holstrom, Jonathan Porter, Trent Gardner and Tommy Freeman also had multiple tackles in the game.

Dallas Scaggs converted all three point-after attempts on special teams, and nearly connected on a 38 yard field goal the first half.

Tehachapi will take on Wasco at 5pm this Friday.

Warriors throttle Wildcats 41-13 for first win at Taft since '99

Midway through the fourth quarter, a fan in the visiting stands bellowed out a loud "Welcome back, Warriors!", followed in suit by a cascade of cheers from the Mountain Football faithful.

Tehachapi is indeed back, and proved that point in a resounding way with a 41-13 thumping over Taft behind a big play running attack that netted 380 yards and a relentless defense.

Evan Fassbender contributed with 12 carries for 50 yards, while Kash Knudson had seven attempts for 33 yards to help Tehachapi to a rushing mark of 317 overall.

On defense, Cameron King led all Braves with six tackles, followed by Zach Timm with four tackles, a punt block, and a fumble recovery. Adam Bullard, Travis Farewell, Tanner Etherton, Tyler Holstrom, Jonathan Porter, Trent Gardner and Tommy Freeman also had multiple tackles in the game.

Dallas Scaggs converted all three point-after attempts on special teams, and nearly connected on a 38 yard field goal the first half.

Tehachapi will take on Wasco at 5pm this Friday.

Indians Soar over BCHS

The Tehachapi Indians steamrolled the Bakersfield Christian Eagles 45-7 last Thursday behind 422 yards rushing in the wing-t attack.

The Indians went up quickly in the contest, leading 13-0 after the first quarter following two long touchdown runs by Marcus Curiel, who finished with 153 yards on 10 carries and two scores. Complimenting Curiel was five different Indians backs that found the endzone in Gabe Saavedra, Robert Natividad, Brian Castaneda, Colt Wilson and Luke Henderson. Wilson was the second-leading rusher on the afternoon with 118 yards on seven attempts.

The Eagles avoided the shut-out by scoring on special teams early in the third quarter, but never threatened.

A big test will come this Thursday when the Indians go on the road to face a tough Taft squad. Game will start at 5pm.

Sports Shorts

Tomahawks reach playoffs
The Tehachapi Tomahawk program highlighted a successful season with all four teams entering the playoffs in the Golden Empire Youth Football League.

The Varsity Tomahawks (4-3) finished the regular season with wins over Garces (38-20), Southeast (30-8), Arvin (46-0), and Central (37-20), while the Junior Varsity Tomahawks (6-1) had successful wins over Garces (25-0), Southeast (14-0), Shafter (23-6), Arvin (22-0), Far East (14-6) and Central (16-13).

The Sophomore Tomahawks (5-2) also had a banner year with wins over Garces (20-6), Shafter (7-6), Arvin (15-0), Far East (13-12), and Central (15-14), while the Freshmen Tomahawks (5-2) had wins over Garces (6-2), Southeast (6-0), Shafter (22-0), Arvin (14-13), and Central (12-7).

Tennis finishes league championships
Mountain Tennis finished off the regular season in impressive fashion at the league championships at Shafter, with Katja Thacker finishing in fourth place and the duo of Abby Croy and Hannah Trott finishing at the third spot in doubles.

Thacker defeated her Shafter opponent 6-0, 6-1 in the quarterfinals to reach the final four. Croy/Trott defeated their Taft opposition 6-1, 6-0 and won third place by overtaking another Taft team, 6-4, 6-0.
Thacker, Croy and Trott qualified for the CIF Individual Championships this Saturday in Clovis.

As a team, Tehachapi will participate in the Division III Central Section CIF playoffs starting this Wednesday.

The junior varsity Lady Braves tennis program finished the regular season as SSL champions with a 9-1 SSL record. Team and individual highlights will be available next week.

Lady Warriors whip Arvin and Wasco

Mountain Volleyball furthered their bid for the no.1 seed in the upcoming CIF Division III playoffs with two convincing victories over Shafter (25-18, 25-21, 25-17) and Wasco (25-10, 25-17, 22-25, 25-17) this past week in South Sequoia League action.

Shafter could do little to match the Tehachapi (28-3; 5-1 SSL) onslaught, with Jami Lankin leading the way with 12 points and four aces and Aly Pulford chipping in with 10 points and three aces.

Leading in kills was Jasmine Julye with nine, followed by Persephonie Devereaux (7), Sarah Horcher (7) and Paige Woodward (6). Julye also led the team in blocks with four, while the Lady Warriors combined for 20 digs overall in the game.
Against Wasco, Shelby Flick had a team leading 16 points followed by Aly Pulford with 10. Sarah Horcher was tops in kills with 14, with Paige Woodward (11), Sarah Carpenetti (10), Jami Lankin (7) and Jasmine Julye (7) also putting points away with ease.

Persephonie Devereaux led the team in blocks with five, while Shelby Flick had the team lead in digs with 10.

After a Tuesday home game against Arvin at 6pm, the South Sequoia League title will be decided this Thursday night with a rematch with Bakersfield Christian on the road.
Should the Lady Warriors pull out a victory, they will be tied with the Eagles in the top spot with two league games remaining. The match against BCHS will begin at 6pm. Fans are encouraged to make the trek to Bakersfield for the big game.

Junior Varsity
After dropping their first three league games, the Lady Braves have come alive to win three-straight in the SSL, taking down Taft (14-25, 27-25, 15-10), Shafter (25-20, 25-20) and Wasco (25-21, 28-26).

Meghan Komin and Colleen Chung led the Braves (3-3 SSL) against Taft with eight successful hits each, followed by Carley Cass with seven successful hits and Bre Farinas with six hits and four kills.

Against Shafter, Amanda Borst had nine successful hits, followed by Meghan Komin (5), Carley Cass (4) and Colleen Chung (2) also contributing in the category. Bre Farinas had five kills, while Taylor Cross had three kills and Danielle Coontz had two kills and three blocks.

Last week was wrapped up with the Lady Braves taking down Wasco, with Lauren Smith recording eight aces, Taylor Majia three aces, Bre Farinas five kills, Meghan Komin three kills, Taylor Cross and Carley Cass two kill each and Danielle Coontz three blocks.

Danielle Villa, Savannah Rosenburg, and Lauren Smith were also credited with a solid defensive efforts in their specialist positions.

The junior varsity and frosh/soph programs will take on Arvin at home Tuesday and Bakersfield Christian on the road Thursday. Game times will be 4pm and 5pm respectively for both teams.

Lady Warriors Golf takes SSL

After winning five out of six mini-tournaments during the season, the Lady Warriors put the finishing touches on an impressive league run with a convincing team win at the SSL championships this past week at Sycamore Canyon Golf Course.

The final team tally had Tehachapi taking the league title with 78 points and a 503 score overall, with Wasco (567), Bakersfield Christian (580) and Shafter (591) rounding out the rest of the recorded team points in the final tournament.

Tarah Steinbach (88), Ashley Carter (96), Sarah Duggan (101), Kaylee Duxbury (105), Maria Berryman (113) Julia Burris (115) rounded out the SSL champion cards.
In addition to the team win, Steinbach also took individual first place honors after winning in a sudden-death playoff. Steinbach tied Megan Cho from BCHS after 18 holes and won the individual championship by posting a par 4 on the second hole of sudden death, sinking a 10 foot put.

Ashley Carter took the individual bronze, while Sarah Duggan had fifth place and Kaylee Duxbury sixth place to round out the medal count.

Not participating in the championship round but still instrumental in the 2008 winning season were Tina Cronauer, Lisa Castillo, Charlsie Baker, Hannah Moore and Hailey Phillips.

By winning league, Tehachapi will advance to the CIF championships at North Kern Golf Course this Monday.

Varsity football Number one

In a highly anticipated South Sequoia League showdown with Bakersfield Christian, a valiant effort by Tehachapi in the second half came just short in an eventual 40-35 loss on the road.

The Warriors found themselves behind 34-7 at the beginning of the third quarter, with the Eagles looking poised to run away with the league game in a rout. Tehachapi (3-4; 1-1 SSL) proceeded to outscore Bakersfield Christian 28-6 the rest of the way, refusing to quit down the stretch.

Mountain Football clawed back in the game by taking advantage of a bunched Eagle line-of- scrimmage defense that produced nine and 10-man fronts. The end result gave Tehachapi wide-open passing lanes on mid and short routes, with the final game stat tally giving the Warriors 305 yards through the air.

The passing mark set a new school record, with Kurtis Knudson collecting all 305 yards on 11 completions, breaking the 1992 record set by Joel Nash, who had 240 passing yards in a 23-0 victory over Wasco.

Mountain Football racked up 578 yards overall, with Josh Strauss leading the way with 203 yards receiving on six completions and 16 carries for 122 yards and two total touchdowns. Adam Mullen also had 126 yards on 21 attempts and two catches for 43 yards and three scores, while Garrett Coontz had a solid all around game by hauling in two completions and two long runs on kickoff returns for 99 total yards.
Despite the loss, the SSL title race is still wide-open with Bakersfield Christian still set to lock horns with Arvin and Taft, both considered league championship contenders along with the Warriors and Eagles.

Mountain Football will invade Taft (6-1; 2-0 SSL) this Friday night. With the win, Tehachapi can record the first win at Taft since 1999. Game will start at 7:30pm.

Junior Varsity
The Braves rushed for 200 yards and three first-half touchdowns to record a shutout win over Bakersfield Christian 23-0 last Friday afternoon.
Kash Knudson had a game-high 72 yards rushing on 10 carries, while Michael Lowder provided the exclamation point with a trio of touchdown runs on three separate drives for 28 yards on the ground overall.

Other offensive leaders included Tyler Holstrom with 45 yards on six carries, Evan Fassbender with 33 yards on six attempts and Zach Timm with 23 yards on two carries.

On defense, Tehachapi (5-2; 2-0 SSL) forced seven turnovers, with Cory Lange recording an interception and two fumble recoveries, Michael Lowder with an interception and Ian Brown, Travis Farewell and Zach Timm with a fumble recoveries. Jonathan Porter also had a punt block and three tackles, Cameron King had four tackles and Trent Gardner had three takedowns. Adam Bullard led the team in tackles with five, while Travis Farewell also recorded two sacks.

The Braves will be in action again this Friday night on the road at Taft. Game will start at 5pm.