No. 7 Cardinal Newman and No. 12 Manteca came into Friday’s game off a 2024 season where they pushed into the upper echelon of their sections but fell short of a section championship game appearance. A competitive game was expected in Santa Rosa, but it never materialized as Manteca scored on five of its six first half possessions to blow out Cardinal Newman 40-7 in the Top 20 matchup.
No. 7 Cardinal Newman and No. 12 Manteca came into Friday’s game off a 2024 season where they pushed into the upper echelon of their sections but fell short of a section championship game appearance. A competitive game was expected in Santa Rosa, but it never materialized as Manteca scored on five of its six first half possessions to blow out Cardinal Newman 40-7 in the Top 20 matchup.
Manteca controls the game on the ground
Manteca is a program that prides itself on physicality and it was evident in the performance of both of its lines. The offensive line, which has three juniors starting, got a good push off the ball and with the help of fullback Maava Tialavea, opened up running lanes for junior Nikko Juarez (No. 16 in the 2027 class rankings) to rush for more than 200 yards and three touchdowns. The Buffaloes had success running left, right and especially up the middle. When you add in timely completions from Owen Gully, the Manteca offense will be tough to handle this season.
Buffaloes defensive is stingy again
Moving over to the defense, Manteca almost posted its second straight shutout to start the season before a late Cardinal Newman score during a running clock in the fourth quarter. Manteca got early pressure on sophomore LT Retamoza before he left with an injury and then were able to sell out even more against the run. Seniors Robert Nelson and Mathieu Evans were the most consistent in making plays behind the line of scrimmage.
Tough opener to the Frank McManus era
A 33 point home loss that was marred by penalties with Grant coming to town next week isn’t how Cardinal Newman drew up the start to 2025. The Cardinals have reinforcements coming like sophomore defensive lineman King Pitts, but the future health of Retamoza will go a long way in determining how this season will play out.
More from the Notebook
Senior wide receiver Quinn Martinez (No. 24 in the 2026 class rankings) is one of the top pass catchers in the region. Manteca likes to get him the ball in space and let him work. Those same skills show up as a returner too. Martinez was also able to get downfield and drew two pass interference penalties.
Juarez is a north-south runner who keeps it simple. See hole, hit hole and turn on the jets. He also runs bigger than his size in not going down on first contact.
Cardinal Newman junior defensive lineman Kahlio Vaetoe (No. 3 in the 2027 class rankings) made a couple of nice plays in the loss. One went for a tackle for loss and another was a stop near the line of scrimmage.
The secondary of Cardinal Newman had two players to note with junior Kordel Strane and junior Ka’vaughn Emoni Penney.
Cardinal Newman senior Devon Bertoli might be the biggest punter in NorCal and also one of the best. In a bright spot for the Cardinals, he uncorked a number of high and long kicks.
Category: General Sports
