NEWMAN - Call three scrimmages a series of warmups before hitting the big stage.

The Orestimba High School football team, along with nine other football programs from the area, competed at the annual Westside Classic at Warrior Stadium on Friday, The schools competing were West of Tracy, Sierra of Manteca, Mountain House, Lathrop, Modesto High, Pacheco of Los Banos, Atwater, Ceres and Central Valley of Ceres.

Four of the schools are from the Western Athletic Conference in Lathrop, Pacheco, Ceres and Central Valley.

“We have a lot of WAC schools,” said Orestimba head coach Austin Martins prior to the scrimmages.

Orestimba scrimmaged against Pacheco first, followed by Mountain House and Lathrop. The Warriors and Pacheco played most of their starters on offense and defense in their matchup.

“The guys came out and they were hungry, and they were fired up,” said Martins of his team. “They got to go and play against someone other than themselves. I was very proud of how they held themselves during the scrimmage, on both sides of the football.”

There were different areas on offense and defense that the Warriors, according to Martins, needed to be cleared up.

“Point of attack,” Martins said. “How we attack the block, how we attack the ball.”

The Warriors opened the scrimmage by scoring two touchdowns. Their defense held the Panthers scoreless.

“We had a real good couple of plays early on,” Martins said. “They were able to bend but not break.”

Another perk on defense was rallying to the ball that Martins liked.

Against Mountain House, which is part of the rugged Valley Oak League, both teams scored a touchdown each.

In the final scrimmage against Lathrop, like against the Mountain House, the Warriors inserted all players on their roster to play on offense and defense.

“It was a mix of both,” said Martins of playing starters and players vying for playing time. “We subbed down, they (Lathrop) subbed down.”

Michael Maier, a senior who started at running back and outside linebacker during the 2025 season, and Sean Nunes, a junior who plays wide receiver and defensive back, had strong performances on both sides of the ball for the Warriors, Martins noted.

Orestimba has two quarterbacks listed on their roster in Alexzander Beltran, a junior, and senior Jorden Jacobo, a senior who is a transfer from Hilmar.

Now Orestimba shifts its focus toward Westside rival Gustine in their Battle of the Chief game, which will be at Gustine High School Stadium this Friday. See elsewhere on the Westside Connect’s website - www.westsideconnect.com - or Wednesday’s print edition for a separate story on the long-time rivalry game.

Mike Bush is a multimedia journalist who was born and raised in the Stanislaus and Merced County areas. Follow him on X/Twitter @MikeBMultimedia and Instagram @mikebushmedia.