Ceres High’s and Central Valley’s girls flag football teams concluded their preseason schedules last week.

The Bulldogs moved to 3-4 on the year after winning one of two games.

“Preseason is the time to figure things out and I think we have done that,” Ceres High head coach Curtis Hulstine said. “We are playing together and that’s what we have to do to be successful.”

Ceres High lost 25-24 to Hughson on Thursday at Bulldog Stadium.

The Bulldogs competed shorthanded as all-purpose player Savannah Leifried missed the game due to another commitment.

“We were not firing on all cylinders against Hughson,” Hulstine said. “We had a couple hiccups on both sides of the ball but started to figure it out later in the game.”

Ceres High edged El Capitan 32-28 on Sept. 3 in Merced.

“The win against El Capitan shows what our team is capable of,” Hulstine said. “We played our best the second half of that game, which secured the win.”

The Hawks fell to 1-6 overall after suffering back-to-back losses.

Central Valley lost five games by a combined 16 points during the preseason, including 13-12 to Mariposa, 21-18 to Hilmar, 30-27 to Chavez, 18-14 to Hughson and 28-23 to Enochs.

“Our record doesn’t show how good our team is,” head coach Tony Cordova said.

Central Valley suffered a one-point road loss while battling host Mariposa on Wednesday.

The Hawks had a touchdown negated during the game due to a penalty.

Quarterback Brianna Espinoza held the ball for too long before tossing a 30-yard TD pass to Ruby Medina.

In flag football, the quarterback has seven seconds to throw the ball before the play is blown dead.

“I was surprised it was called,” Cordova said. “We were never called for it last year.”

Brianna Espinoza passed for 193 yards and two touchdowns.

Alicia Espinoza caught three passes for 83 yards and one touchdown.

Ruby Medina totaled 35 yards and one TD on two receptions.

Jocelyn Rivera added 45 yards on four catches.

Ayleen Apreza rushed for 51 yards on four carries and hauled in one pass for 20 yards.

Tarnjot Kaur collected a team-high eight tackles on defense.

Alicia Espinoza had four tackles and one pass deflection.

Giana Breshears had four tackles.

Mia Mendoza and Madelyn Mastropierro both had three tackles.

Rylee Randez made two tackles.

Sophia Alvarez finished with one tackle and two pass deflections.

Hughson rallied for a four-point victory over visiting Central Valley on Sept. 3.

The Hawks had an opportunity to win the contest with less than one minute to play.

“We were moving the ball but it wasn’t quick enough,” Cordova said. “We were short on time.”

“It’s disappointing walking off the field with a loss,” he added. “But you can see the potential in them.”

Brianna Espinoza threw for 161 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Rivera caught seven passes for 63 yards and one touchdown.

Apreza caught two passes for 33 yards and one TD.

Alicia Espinoza caught two passes for 35 yards.

She had five tackles and two pass deflections on defense.

Mendoza had three tackles, one interception and three pass deflections.

Alvarez, Randez and Breashears made seven, five and three tackles, respectively.

Ceres High and Central Valley will begin the Western Athletic Conference portion of their schedules this week.

The Hawks are battle-tested heading into league play.

“It’s going to help them going forward,” Cordova said while talking about the benefits of playing close games. “They’re a lot more focused. They understand every play makes a difference.”