By Ed Martin, Editor
Lemoore's Corey Whitmore puts the Tigers ahead in Friday's 48-14 victory over the Pioneers Friday night in Visalia.
Lemoore's Corey Whitmore puts the Tigers ahead in Friday's 48-14 victory over the Pioneers Friday night in Visalia.
Photo by Bill Burris

On paper, Lemoore's talented Tiger football team would undoubtedly be the favorite in Friday's upcoming West Yosemite League showdown at Hanford, a pivotal showdown in what could be the game of the season for Lemoore High School.

The Tigers set the stage for Friday night's showdown in Hanford, a team that comes into the game 6-1 overall and 2-1 in the WYL.

Lemoore enters the contest with an impressive 8-1 mark (a perfect 4-0 in the WYL) while Hanford, at 6-1 overall, has played fewer games than Lemoore. The Tigers are 4-0 in the league, while the Bullpups lost 24-21 to Redwood High, a team the Tigers beat 21-14 on the Rangers' home field.

Unfortunately, the game isn't played on paper, and based on decades of "Milk Can" games between these two schools, anything can happen. The game, scheduled for Friday, October 29, is in Hanford, where possession of the traditional Milk Can is at stake once again.

A win Friday guarantees the WYL championship for the Tigers, and a loss would hand the Tigers a WYL 4-1 record, while the Bullpups would finish at 3-2. For Lemoore head coach Rich Tuman, he has undoubtedly garnered considerable respect in his first full season, as he led his Tigers to an 8-1 overall record (Lemoore's only loss was a 31-21 decision at Kingsburg High School).

Unfortunately, high school football games aren't played on paper. Teams play football on a field of competition where even an underdog can sometimes surprise.

The Tigers tuned up for their Friday night showdown with a 48-14 win over Mt. Whitney in Visalia, and judging from the final box score, Lemoore wasn't seriously threatened in the game. However, the Tigers were up only 21-14 at the half before unleashing its offensive might in the final two quarters, outscoring Mt. Whitney 27-0 and completely dominating the game, setting up Friday's showdown with Hanford.

It was a quick start for the Tigers Friday in Visalia. Lemoore got on the scoreboard first when quarterback Ty Chambers scored on a four-yard run for an early 7-0 lead.

In the second quarter, with the two teams knotted at 7-7, the Pioneers took their only lead early in the second period when Alexander Garza scored on an 11-yard pass from Pioneer quarterback Chris Zavala, giving their team a 14-7 lead.

Only minutes later, Tiger quarterback  Ty Chambers scored on a one-yard touchdown to tie the game at 14-14. Minutes later, Chambers connected with Cory Whitmore for a 37-yard touchdown to go up 21-14.

Lemoore upped the ante in the third quarter on a 14-yard rushing TD by Chambers as the Tigers took a 28-14 lead. The Tigers scored twice more to outlast the Pioneers 48-14 finally.