On Tuesday under the lights of Joe Debely Stadium and after a celebration of its senior class, the Turlock High School flag football team put an exclamation point on the regular season by swiftly dismantling Enochs by a 53-0 score.
Not only was it a fifth straight win for the Bulldogs, but it was its fifth straight shutout. And not only have opponents been consistently shut out, but they have been mauled.
After Tuesday's result, Turlock has outscored its past five opponents by a combined score of 183-0. The Bulldogs will enter the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs next week with a 17-1 overall record and a 9-1, first place mark in the Central California Athletic League. It marks consecutive league titles for the three-year-old program.
Senior quarterback Alondra Medel, in relief of injured starter Josslyn Crittenden who has been inactive for three weeks and will miss the remainder of the year with a knee injury, continued to lead the Turlock offensive attack Tuesday with six touchdown passes. Juniors Makenli Watt, Mara Gemperle and Audrey Bailey each caught two.
Medel and Bailey connected on a 1-yard score for the first points of the game during Turlock’s opening drive. Gemperle then caught a 5-yard pass in the end zone to extend the lead. Following an interception by senior Marley Hernandez, Watt rushed for a 20-yard score.
Watt went right back to work the next Turlock drive with an 8-yard touchdown catch on the ensuing drive. Bailey followed with a 16-yard touchdown catch and Watt piled on with a 19-yard scoring reception. Gemperle added the final points with a 14-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter.
Enochs, driving and desperately trying to break Turlock’s scoreless streak in the waning seconds of play, were shot down as junior Lynn Calderon-Salvatier recorded a sack to end the game.
Sac-Joaquin Section playoff brackets for all five divisions will be released on Friday by 4 p.m.
Play-in games will be held on Monday, with the first round taking place on Wednesday.