Ybarra pounds away for Jacks

QUINCY - Manny Ybarra's play was one of a few keys to the Quincy

Jacks evening their season record at 2-2 on Friday night.

Ybarra ran 15 times for 142 yards and helped sparked the Jacks'

37-22 Central Washington Athletic Conference (CWAC) win over

visiting Wapato to end a two-game losing streak.

QUINCY - Manny Ybarra's play was one of a few keys to the Quincy Jacks evening their season record at 2-2 on Friday night.

Ybarra ran 15 times for 142 yards and helped sparked the Jacks' 37-22 Central Washington Athletic Conference (CWAC) win over visiting Wapato to end a two-game losing streak.

Quincy (2-2, 1-2) trailed 7-6 early in the second quarter before Ybarra scored his only touchdown, ironically via the air, on a five-yard pass from Jackson Hodges, to give the Jacks a lead they would never surrender.

Ybarra finished the night with 182 total yards from scrimmage.

"Last week our players showed some great mental toughness to keep fighting back every time something went against us," Quincy head coach Stephen Wallace said. "Even in a loss, they learned a lot about themselves and gained some confidence. We had a great week of practice, with a high level of focus and it paid off tremendously."

Wapato (0-4, 0-3) scored first in the second half to cut the Quincy lead to 20-14 but Armando Tafoya kicked a 40-yard field goal for Quincy and Kody Berens would catch a 20-yard touchdown pass in the early stages of the fourth quarter and Quincy was headed to the win.

Kevin Rincon scored a three-yard touchdown run, Kai Yamamoto ran a score in from 13 yards and Hodges popped into the end zone on a one-yard dive to round out the Quincy scoring on the evening.

Hodges finished 4-for-12 for 114 yards while Yamamoto ran four times for 49 yards for the Jacks who were obviously more focused on a ground-and-pound approach.

"We began the year with a four-year started at quarterback and several very talented receivers so it was easy to call up pass plays," Wallace said. "However, during the first two weeks I began noticing a change in the offensive line mentality. They were no longer firing off and taking the fight to the defense, instead they were merely getting in peoples way. Last week, we were determined to run the ball no matter how many people they put in the box. This week we came in with the same attitude and our line responded wonderfully."

Now Quincy enters the final five weeks of CWAC play as a potential playoff contender with many more areas to improve before securing postseason reality.

"I believe we are a complete offensive team," Wallace said. "Our defense has not stepped up as much as we would like, but the talent is there. If we are going to take the next step we are going to need to come together as a defensive unit."