Lemoore's quest for WYL crown goes through El Diamante Friday in Tiger Stadium

By Ed Martin, The Leader Editor
LHS Head Coach Shannon Pulliam
LHS Head Coach Shannon Pulliam

It’s official. Lemoore’s road to another West Yosemite League title goes through El Diamante. The Miners guaranteed a marquee matchup this Friday in Tiger Stadium by easily defeating Redwood High School Friday night on the Ranger’s home turf at Mineral King Bowl 29-14 to set up the historic matchup Friday night.

The Miners, 4-0 in the WYL and 7-1 overall are seeking the Division II top playoff seed as they prepare to tackle the Tigers. Lemoore, 3-1 in the WYL, its only loss to Redwood 29-36 in a game they led by two touchdowns at the half, needs to beat El Diamante on Friday and then Hanford the following week to capture a second straight league crown.

The win gave the Miners sole possession of first place as they bring their high profile running back, DeAngello Torres, into Tiger Stadium. Torres is the league’s second-leading rusher with 1,038 yards and was a force in El Diamante’s victory Friday night. He ran for 153 yards and two touchdowns as the Miners overcame a first-quarter 7-0 deficit against the Rangers.

The Miners quarterback, J.C. Robles is no slouch either, running for a touchdown and throwing a five-yard TD pass to Joey Chica.

While Torres is the league’s second best runner, the Miners will face the WYL’s top rusher, Richard Doctor, who not only leads the league, but the state as well with 2,026 yards. Every time Doctor touches the ball, he averages nearly 10 yards per carry. Currently he’s the 14th ranked rusher in the nation.

Doctor also has 28 touchdowns on the year, putting him second on the state touchdown list.

Coach Shannon Pulliam is optimistic about Lemoore’s chances at home against El Diamante, saying the Tigers’ running game is key, and that includes Doctor as well as fullback Rashaun Davis. “Obviously everybody’s going to try and stop number five (Doctor),” said Pulliam following the scary victory over Mt. Whitney. “Defensively we’ve got to shore up our pass coverage up a little bit and we’ll have two strong weeks of practice to prepare for those guys.”

Another thing in Lemoore’s favor is its offense, which has averaged over 39 points per game, the lowest output, 12 points in a 14-12 loss to Clovis earlier this season. Overall the Tigers lead the WYL in points scored with 315, including a 57-31 win over Golden West and a 62—32 victory over hapless Hanford West.

Game time is 7:30 Friday night in Tiger Stadium.

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