Football:

Dropped passes.  Turnovers.  Missed tackles. The inability to stop the run.  And once again, injuries.  El Diamante was shutout against Tulare Western 28-0 on Friday night in Tulare.  For the most part of the first two-quarters, the Miners looked legit.  They marched down the field on their first drive, but failed to get the ball in the end zone and turned the ball over on downs.  The defense battled their tails off most of the game, holding the high-powered Mustangs offense to just 7 points until their last drive of the first half.  But quick and inefficient drives on offense resulted in a worn out Miner defense, and a lot more Mustang points.  The Miners had 4 turnovers on Friday night, but forced two of their own, including an interception in the end zone by junior DB Isaiah Rivas.  The biggest issue of all was, in fact, the injuries.  The Miners had multiple key starters already out with injuries going into Week 1, including D-Tackle Isaiah Loring.  And in the first quarter, senior Running Back/Returnman Drake Beno went down with what seems to be a Torn MCL.  The Miners are going into next week facing one of the most prolific offenses in the entire Central Valley, in Tulare Union.  Kazmeir Allen, Union’s Running Back, rushed for 186 yards and 5 Touchdowns in their Week 1 game against Mt. Whitney.  He also added a 98-yard reception for a score, resulting in 6 total touchdowns.  Six.  Tulare Western’s only source of a passing game in Week 1 were screens.  So the Miner secondary stood their ground for the most part, but the rest of the defense is going to have become a stone wall if they want any shot at beating the high-flying Redskins.  If not, expect a shootout.  

Almost game time… GO MINERS!💚💙💚💙 pic.twitter.com/Unp2vJSl1W

— El Diamante (@All4TheMiners) August 26, 2017

Volleyball:

El Diamante girls volleyball is off to a great start in 2017.  For their first match of the year, they traveled to Bakersfield to take on and beat the Ridgeview Wolf Pack in three straight sets: 25-14, 25-8, and 25-13.  Carli Gordon led the team with 7 kills and a 58% kill percentage.  Rebecca Zalewski also added to the tally with 5 kills.  Their defense and blocking were a big reason as to why they dominated the entire night.  Sophomore 6 footer Preslee Nunez led the Miners with 6 total blocks, followed closely by Gillian Nutter with 4.  Senior Madison Flores kept the plays alive with 11 digs, averaging almost 4 digs per set.  That same week they defeated Reedley 3-1 in 4 sets.  Gordon, Zalewski, and Alyssa Stephens all had 8 kills.  Nunez and Nutter also added 6 more total blocks.  Senior Makayla Dwelle and sophomore Avery Faria both had 8 digs.  This is a team full of youth and fire.  The Miners have great senior leadership complimented by a lot of younger talent on the roster and throughout the rest of the program.  2017 can be a season for the Lady Miners to make a deep run in the postseason.  And if not this season, very, very soon.

Twitter: @Chandler7Lucas | Read all of his articles HERE.