Lemoore's unbeaten Tigers celebrate after Friday's 49-15 thrashing of Mt. Whitney.
Lemoore's unbeaten Tigers celebrate after Friday's 49-15 thrashing of Mt. Whitney.
Photo by Bill Burris, Photography for Kings County

Lemoore's rendezvous with Hanford is one step closer after the Tigers crushed Mt. Whitney 49-15 on the Pioneers home turf Friday night.

The impressive victory improved Lemoore's season record to 8-0 and 4-0 in the West Yosemite League. Hanford kept pace with a 56-44 win over Golden West. The two Kings County teams, both ranked in the Central Section top 10, will face off November 7 in Lemoore. 

The Tigers heave an Oct. 30 Thursday night matchup with El Diamante before hosting the Bullpups in November. The Bullpups face Mt. Whitney on Friday before meeting Lemoore.

In Friday night's game, the verdict was never in doubt as the Tigers jumped to a 35-0 halftime lead. They cruised to an easy 49-15 victory, amassing nearly 570 total yards with 260 yards on the ground and 310 through the air. Quarterback Cort Groathouse passed for three touchdowns on the night and ran for one more. Groathouse opened the onslaught with a 12-yard pass to Reggie Davis. Trey Perryman led the ground attack with 143 yards.

The vaunted Tiger defense allowed the Pioneers just 15 points as the Pioneers' Hayden McCAw scored twice.