by 
Superior Sun
The Jr. Panthers’ were unable to take advantage of several Eloy turnovers and it eventually came back to haunt them in an 18 – 0 loss in last Wednesday’s football game.
“It was a tough game,” Jr. Panthers’ head coach Manuel Ortega said afterwards. “We never gave up, but we have some work to do to fix our mistakes from this game.”
The defense did all it could, creating turnovers to give the offense more chances to put points on the scoreboard. Steven Ybarra, Mando Longoria and Cedric Mendoza were the standouts on defense, playing a physical brand of football and making key stops during the game.
On offense, Ybarra connected with Mendoza on several pass completions but, ultimately, the Jr. Panthers couldn’t get into the end zone. It was the difference in the game.
The Jr. Panthers next game is Tuesday, September 09, 2014, at Hayden.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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