Season Stats: 20-336 4TD's. 12 carries for 157 yards and 3TD's. 24 tackles, 1I Interceptions, 2 fumble recoveries
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Lemoore gets new firepower [/SIZE]
Sophomore Aviles joins Ausberry in Tigers' attack.
By Nick Giannandrea / The Fresno Bee
LEMOORE — David Ausberry appears to have found himself a sidekick.
Sophomore running back Eric Aviles rushed for 183 yards to complement the all-around efforts of Ausberry, one of the Central Section's most heavily recruited athletes, as Lemoore High rolled to a 32-21 victory over Redwood on Friday in a West Yosemite League game.
Aviles was making his first start in the backfield this season. And it didn't take long for him to find his rhythm.
He went for 15 yards on his third carry, then gained 32 on his fourth. Aviles averaged 7.6 yards for his 24carries.
"He stepped up big-time," Ausberry said. "I knew he had it in him. He shows that in practice every day."
Ausberry had quite a game himself, scoring three touchdowns on a night he was also selected homecoming king.
"Homecoming king will be fun around school next week, but the win is what counts," said Ausberry, who caught eight passes for 107yards and rushed twice for 65yards.
Lemoore (3-2 overall, 1-1 WYL) took control in the third quarter, scoring three of the first four times it had the ball.
Cory Billingsley's 24-yard scoring run less than 2 minutes into the second half gave the Tigers a lead they would not relinquish.
After a Jamar Brown interception stopped Redwood's next possession, Lemoore scored again. Billingsley's 9-yard touchdown pass to Brown with 7:05 to play in the third quarter made it 26-14, all the points the Tigers would need. Aviles contributed 36yards rushing on the two short scoring drives.
"[Aviles] did a good job," said Lemoore coach Shaun Ball, whose team is ranked fifth in Division III by The Bee. "We always knew he could do the job if we needed him to, and he did today."
Lemoore put the game away by capitalizing on the last of Redwood's four turnovers.
After forcing a Lemoore punt, the Rangers muffed the catch with Lemoore's Ricky Plueard recovering.
Two plays later, Ausberry broke free for a 50-yard touchdown to put Lemoore ahead 32-14 with 11:48 left in the fourth quarter.
"You can't turn the ball over like that," Redwood coach John Yavasile said. "Last week we took advantage of them, and tonight we got bit by them."
Redwood (2-3, 1-1) would get a 34-yard touchdown pass from Brett Brodersen to Kyle Overmyer on its next possession, but it was too little, too late.
Brodersen helped the Rangers roll to an early 14-0 lead.
He put Redwood on the scoreboard first when he connected with Overmyer for a 9-yard touchdown pass with 3:44 left in the first quarter.
Brodersen directed a six-play, 70-yard drive on the Rangers' next possession, capped by a 54-yard scoring pass to Overmyer at the 11:39 mark of the second quarter to put Redwood up 14-0.
Redwood could have taken a 21-0 lead early on, but Phillip Vargas fumbled on the Lemoore 5 during the Rangers' first possession.
"We were not consistent on offense," Yavasile said. "We had some opportunities and let them slip through our fingers."
Lemoore came back behind its sophomore and its established star.
Aviles accounted for 50 yards on an eight-play, 77-yard march that culminated in Billingsley's 13-yard touchdown pass to Ausberry with 8:05 to play in the second quarter, closing the gap to 14-7.
Lemoore tied the score 14 on a 28-yard screen pass from Billingsley to Ausberry. Aviles rushed for 37 yards on the drive to put the Tigers in scoring position.
The reporter can be reached at ngiannandrea@fresnobee.com or (559) 622-2407. Advertisements