Lanier rushing attack overpowers Jefferson in district opener

Lanier senior running back Nicholas Torres rushedfor 131 yards and a touchdown in the first half as the Voks defeated Jefferson 31-14 on Friday at the San Antonio ISD Athletic Complex in the two teams' District 14-5A-II opener.

"What I saw on the field was what we went over at practice," Torres said. "We just kept trying to pound the rock and run up the score."

Torres' efforts and a 1-yard rushing touchdown early in the second half from sophomore QB Erick Esparza propelled the Voks to a 17-6 advantage with just under two minutes to play in the third quarter.

After an early score, not much was going for Jefferson on offense, but the Mustangs kept plugging away on the ground, eventually punching in a 6-yard rushing touchdown from senior running back Michael Bejar.

The Mustangs lined up to attempt a 2-point conversion that would cut the deficit down to three, but Mother Nature had other plans as players and coaches were forced off the field due to a lightning delay.

Jefferson waited over two hours for the 2-point play, but the wait was well worth it as Bejar barreled up the A-gap for the conversion.

On the ensuing possession, the Voks got right back to work on the ground, alternating carries between Torres and Esparza. Lanier ran the ball eight consecutive times before Torres found the end zone for his second and final score of the night.

"He had been frustrated with the prior games because he didn't get many touches, but it was strategic," Lanier coach Sal Tellez said of Torres. "We know what we have with him. We have younger backs that we want to get into the rotation and see what they have. When you get in close games, especially in that first half, we wanted to make sure we ran with Nicholas (Torres)."

A quick three-and-out from the Mustangs gave possession back to the Voks. Three plays later, Esparza broke free for a 43-yard rushing touchdown - his second of the night.

"He's a leader," Tellez said of Esparza. "He's a sophomore leader. We have two other quarterbacks. We want to see what we have. So we rode with the other guys in the first half, and then in the second half, we threw Erick in there. And you saw how electrifying he was."

During the lightning delay, Tellez had to keep his players energized.

"When we were in there, we were just talking to them about how important it is to stay focused," Tellez explained. "We gave them bananas. We gave them some oranges. I had some of the parents go buy me some stuff because it was almost 11 p.m. So we knew they were going to be hungry. We knew they wanted to have something in their stomach, and we wanted to make sure we did that. I think that was the key. I think you saw the difference in the second half."