Cardinal football improves to 5-2

The McClave Cardinal Football team extended their winning streak to three games with an impressive 48-8 win over the Manzanola Bobcats in Manzanola on Friday night, Oct. 12, and while the win over Fowler was all about the defense, the story this time was all offense for the Cardinals. The Cards found the end zone six times in the first half, with six different players, posting a 42-0 halftime lead.

Senior running back Dillan Kelly started the scoring frenzy, with a 25-yard rushing touchdown early in the first quarter.  Senior fullback Troy Miller was the next to capitalize on the struggling Manzanola defense, running for a 1-yard touchdown.  With the defense on its heels, sophomore quarterback Taylor Geisinger kept the next one himself, scoring from 4 yards out.  Geisinger then connected with Cody Canfield, recently back from an injury in week 4, for a short pass to the end zone.  Next, it was junior running back Horatio Maldonado who ran the ball for 19 yards for the score, followed by a 25-yard reception by Abe Salazar for a touchdown a few plays later.  The only score for the Cardinals in the second half came on a 50-yard pass from sophomore T.J. Trujillo to junior Dallas Newman, and with the clock running down in the fourth quarter, Manzanola was able to avoid the shutout with a touchdown and two point conversion.

On the night, Dillan Kelley had 55 yards rushing on 7 carries, while Horatio Maldonado had 40 yards on 6 carries.  Quarterback Taylor Geisinger threw for 94 yards, with 3 completions out of 4 attempts.  Defensively, the Cardinals were led by junior Abe Salazar with 6 tackles, while twin brother Gabe helped out with an interception and 25-yard return in the first half.