Two games, one win for the Oakdale High School varsity boys basketball team. On Wednesday, Jan. 28 Oakdale went to Modesto to take on Central Catholic but came up on the wrong side of a buzzer beater in a 58-55 loss. The team shook it off and turned their attention to Manteca, where the Mustangs were victorious 72-55.
In the heartbreaking defeat to the Raiders, Oakdale had an early lead. How early? Before tipoff, a technical foul was called on Central Catholic and Bryce Busam split a pair of free throws before a second had even ticked off the clock. Griffin Galuppi hit a corner three to give Oakdale a 4-0 advantage with 6:53 left in the first quarter. Less than two minutes later, Oakdale expanded their lead to 7-0 when Gavin Wyatt hit a three pointer. However, the Raiders stormed back with a 12-3 run to take a 12-10 lead, the host team’s first lead of the night with 2:52 to play in the first. Oakdale trailed 19-15 at the end of the first quarter.
Down 26-22, Donavyn Hernandez hit a deep three with 3:11 left in the half, making Central Catholic take a time out. Niki Jones powered his way through a crowded lane for an offensive rebound and put back to give Oakdale a 27-26 lead and Charles Benninger hit a three-pointer with six seconds left to make it a 30-30 game at halftime.
The third quarter went back and forth but Oakdale took the lead late when Benninger passed it to Jones who made the basket and completed a three-point play at the line upon being fouled. Oakdale entered the fourth quarter up 46-41.
That lead evaporated when the Raiders took a 47-46 lead with 6:07 left in regulation. Oakdale then regained the lead but saw the Raiders go on an 8-0 run to take a 54-53 lead with 1:56 to play. Beau Kesterson tied the game at 55 with 32 seconds to play. Central Catholic’s Jordan Magana hit the game winning three-pointer with two-tenths of a second left in the contest.
“We couldn’t score in the final minutes. We were just bumping into each other and causing turnovers. I think that’s the best way to summarize the loss,” said Mustangs coach Kelly Power.
Benninger had 15 points for Oakdale and Kesterson added 10.
Friday night, Jan. 30, Oakdale hosted the Buffaloes and got the season sweep. Things did not come easy for Oakdale in the first quarter. Manteca took an early 4-0 lead. Oakdale’s first points of the night came on a three-point shot by Jones with 6:43 to play in the first quarter. Busam got an assist to Hernandez to bring Oakdale within two points with 1:18 to play in the first quarter. Oakdale trailed 17-15 at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter, Oakdale doubled up the visitors, outscoring them 16-8. Oakdale entered the locker room with a 31-25 lead and stretched the margin to 52-35 by the end of the third.
Oakdale outscored Manteca 18-5 on second chance points. The trend was on full display in the fourth quarter when both Galuppi and Wyatt each pulled down offensive rebounds and made the putbacks. Jones put the exclamation point on the game when he hit a deep corner three to make it a 70-53 game with 1:37 to play.
“This was a great bounce back game. The Valley Oak League is so tough and nothing comes easy,” said Power. “The boys stayed focus and really grinded it out.”
Jones led the team with 16 points and Benninger had 13.
“Tonight, we knew what the mission was. We knew we had to have this one and we just had to trust each other,” said Hernandez, who finished with nine points.
Three games remain in the regular season for the Mustangs. On Wednesday, Feb. 4 Oakdale will host Sierra. This will be Senior Night 2026. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
Oakdale finishes the season with a pair of road games, traveling to East Union on Wednesday, Feb. 11 and going to Mountain House on Friday, Feb. 13.
The Mustangs ended this past week in third place in the Valley Oak League with a record of 6-3 in league, and they are 21-4 overall.
The JV boys put both their games in the win column, with a 62-48 decision at Central Catholic and a 60-45 win over Manteca on the home court, to improve to 7-2 in VOL play. It was a tough week for the freshmen, losing 70-24 on the road to Central and falling in a close 53-47 contest to Manteca.
WRESTLING
A trip to Lincoln High School in Stockton on Saturday, Jan. 31 was a successful one for the Mustang wrestling program. The team captured the Sac-Joaquin Section Division I Team Duals Championship. Teams in the D1 competition included Folsom, Pleasant Grove, Gregori, River City, Central Valley, Pitman, and Vacaville in addition to Oakdale. The Mustangs outlasted the Pitman Pride for the title, 36-32.
“The dual championships were a complete team effort and a great accomplishment for this group. We needed our best effort from all 14 wrestlers, they all showed up and performed well,” said head coach Steve Strange. “The team is looking forward to a great postseason, taking each challenge week by week.
GIRLS SOCCER
Tightening their grip on first place in the Valley Oak League, Oakdale’s varsity soccer girls defeated Central Catholic 4-1 in a road game on Jan. 28, then shut down Patterson in a home game on Feb. 2, winning 3-0. They improved to 9-0 in the VOL with the wins.
At Central, the girls scored two goals in each half, allowing just one to the host team in the second half. Layla Garcia-Gonzalez had two goals; Skyler Burford and Shelby Mitchell added one goal each. Assists came from Dakota Burford with two, Jezell Perez-Andrade and Garcia-Gonzalez with one apiece.
The varsity girls scored three goals in the second half to get the shutout win over the visiting Tigers on Feb. 2 with two goals from Garcia-Gonzalez and one from Skyler Burford. Each also had an assist, with Mitchell notching an assist as well.
BOYS SOCCER
In their only Valley Oak League game of the week, Oakdale’s varsity soccer boys went on the road to Sierra in Manteca, where they were shut out by the Timberwolves, 4-0. Sierra jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first half, adding one more tally in the second while keeping the Mustangs off the board. Oakdale was scheduled to travel to face off with Central Catholic on Feb. 3 and will be back at home to host Patterson on Thursday, Feb. 5. They close out the campaign on the road at Mountain House on Feb. 10.
The JV boys suited up for the road game at Sierra and fell by a 5-0 decision.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
A pair of hard-fought Valley Oak League basketball games went in the loss column for the varsity Lady Mustangs, as they fell on the home court to Central Catholic and then on the road at Manteca.
Their Jan. 27 game against Central was a 57-36 loss. They battled against Manteca but still came up a little short, 34-25. The teams were knotted at 15-15 headed into halftime, but Manteca used a 14-6 third quarter advantage to pull away.
The JV girls were winners in their game at Manteca, coming home with a 33-16 victory. The freshman girls took their first league loss on Jan. 29, as they fell by a 35-30 final to Manteca. They currently have a 5-1 VOL record.
Editor Marg Jackson contributed to this report.
