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Tigers, despite loss to Bullpups, retain No. 1 spot and will host opener in Division II playoffs, that begin Friday night in Tiger Stadium
The Tigers, technically, are the West Yosemite League’s champion, even after Friday night’s 42-0 loss to the Bullpups in Hanford. The Tigers will host their Division II football opener on Friday as Mission Prep High School rolls into Tiger Stadium despite the unfortunate loss.
San Luis Obispo’s Mission Prep High School, known as the Royals, is a private school that went unbeaten in the coast’s Ocean League, winning its division via a perfect 9-0 season.
The game time is 7 p.m. in Tiger Stadium.
The Tigers finished a solid regular campaign on a sour note after winning eight of 10 games, including four convincing West Yosemite League victories. Hanford played only three WYL games before hosting the Tigers last Friday night.
Hanford’s only loss was against fellow WYL school Redwood, a talented team that defeated the Bullpups 24-21 earlier in the season. Redwood’s only loss was a 21-14 decision to Lemoore on Oct. 1 in Visalia.
Lemoore’s coach, Rich Tuman, didn’t offer any excuse for Lemoore’s disappointing loss. “There are no excuses,” he said. “Actually, Hanford is a very good team. They are very fast and very quick.”
Tuman admitted that his team wasn’t 100 percent. Injuries may have played a role, but that didn’t take away from Hanford’s surprising victory. Lemoore’s running back, Andrew Moench, for example, ended up playing just one play. “They tackled him, and he hurt his ankle again and was out,” said Tuman.
“We had some injuries … but Hanford is a good team.”
Because the Tigers won their division, they host the Central Section’s opener against Mission Prep, a team that went undefeated in the Coast League, a division that includes stalwarts San Luis Obispo, Santa Maria, and Morro Bay.
Mission Prep knows how to score. In its last three games, its players pounded out a 60-3 victory over Morro Bay, and they followed that up with a 63-0 shutout against Templeton. The Prep ended the regular season with a 35-7 win over San Luis Obispo High School.
