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ByRichGreene rgreene@redbluffdailynews.com @richgreenenews on Twitter RED BLUFF New Mercy War- riors football coach Marvin Benefield wanted to get back to the high school level. But there was another reason he's taken on the Mercy gig, he wants to prove that he can de- fensively slow down the high scoring prolific offenses that make up 8-man football. "I love defense. I'm a defen- sive guy," Benefield said. Beating a challenge to his schemes is something that drives Benefield as a coach. He most recently worked in youth football with the Jr. Spar- tans, where he was told the youth players wouldn't be able to handle his defensive schemes. He worked to prove them wrong. Benefield said he's not going to stay with a one-formation tra- ditional scheme and instead will react to what opposing offenses try to throw at the Warriors. Benefield is Mercy's third coach since the school switched to the 8-man level in 2010. The last two years Mercy has toed the line of mediocrity, slipping into the playoffs both years as the California - South Division's fourth seed and being shown the door from the play- offs the first round. Benefield wants to bring Mercy back to the days he re- members the Warriors from his last stint in the high school ranks. He spoke at Tuesday's prac- tice of a decade old memory of when he was on the staff at Chester High School and a vis- iting Warriors team came there on a cold day for a playoff game and beat them with physical football. Benefield said that's the men- tality he's hoping to get back for the Warriors program even though the program is now at the 8-man level. There is work to do. Foremost is the roster needs more numbers and both coaches and players will be looking to recruit some Mercy students to come out and join the team in the coming days. Benefield said he could use a couple more players and still needs to find an athletic corner- back to run the system he's plan- ning. Mercy High School has a small senior class this year, just two juniors Elijah Gash and Wil- liam Gentry return. Gentry, who is only in his sec- ond year of football, picked up 407 rushing yards last year. On defense he had a pair of inter- ceptions and 70 tackles. "On defense you just get to hit people," said Gentry, who fortu- nately for his coach said he pre- fers the defensive side of the game. Elijah Gash, who along with Bryce Baer, Richie Borges and Dartagan Kingwell will give Mercy plenty of size, said he likes the aggressive nature the defensive side of the game can bring. Most of Mercy's offensive production last year came from running back Alejandro Guer- rero and quarterback Tommy Garcia, who have both since graduated. One of the players com- ing back is Koleby Potter, who scored four touchdowns last year as a freshman. There's still lingering ques- tions about who will take over as quarterback by the time Mercy opens their season Aug. 30 against defending section champion Redding Christian. The Warriors host six games this season, including their first three of the year with Elk Creek and Hayfork taking the Satur- day visit to Sacred Heart Par- ish School. Preparation for the upcoming season is something else play- ers and their new coach seem to agree on. Gash and Gentry said they both like Benefield's strategy for conditioning, which incor- porates more running plays at 100 percent to get in their en- durance work. Two days in Benefield said he's been pleased with the work the players have put in. Mercy just needs a couple more willing to do it. 8-MAN FOOTBALL Newcoach,newattitude Benefield emphasizing defensive football MercyheadcoachMarvinBenefieldworkswithplayersatTuesday'spractice. Mercy players work on a tackling drill Tuesday. The Associated Press KANSAS CITY, MO. Josh Donald- son paced an 20-hit offensive as- sault with two long home runs as the A's pounded Kansas City 11-3 on Tuesday night to end the Roy- als' eight-game winning streak. Donaldson hit solo homers to center field in the seventh and eighth innings, his 24th and 25th of the year, both estimated at more than 400 feet against Roy- als left-hander Bruce Chen. It was a monster night with the bat for several A's players, and their 20 hits were a season high. Brandon Moss had four of them, including a double that scored Oakland's first run in the first in- ning. The A's would build a 6-0 lead for starter Jon Lester (3-0 with the A's, 13-7 overall) through the first five innings. Lester had a rare rough patch in the bottom of the fifth, surren- dering three runs, but he bounced back with a scoreless inning to finish his night. Josh Reddick, Sam Fuld and Donaldson each had three hits for Oakland. Leading 6-3, the A's put it away with a single in the sev- enth on Donaldson's first homer and then scored three more in the eighth. AMERICAN LEAGUE OaklandA's rip Kansas City, 11-3 CHARLIE RIEDEL — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A's catcher Derek Norris and starting pitcher Jon Lester, right, meet on the mound on Tuesday in Kansas City, Mo. By Beth Harris The Associated Press LOS ANGELES The Clippers moved on from months of ugli- ness Tuesday, with Steve Ballmer officially becoming the team's new owner in a record $2 billion sale that ousted Donald Sterling as the NBA's longest-tenured owner. Sterling bought the team in 1981 for $12 million and presided over decades of losing seasons be- fore engaging in a fierce legal bat- tle with his estranged wife to hold on to his most prized asset. The team said the sale closed after a Los Angeles court con- firmed the authority of Shelly Sterling, on behalf of the Sterling Family Trust, to sell the franchise to the former Microsoft CEO. The NBA Board of Governors had previously approved the sale. "Really excited — in a pretty hardcore way — to continue the path to making the Clippers a bet- ter and better basketball team, and a better and better citizen of the Los Angeles community," Ballmer told The Associated Press in a phone interview. The bizarre drama began in April when a recording surfaced of Donald Sterling scolding his girlfriend for bringing black men to Clippers games. The audio spurred the NBA to ban Sterling for life and fine him $2.5 million. NBA Steve Ballmer becomes owner of LA Clippers For generations, this has been a bountiful lake for harvesting oysters, long before millions of gallons of oil spilled off Loui- siana's coast in 2010. On this day, Slavich's cage-like net pulls up empty oyster shells. FOOD Gulfoysterharvest has nose-dived FULLSTORYONPAGEB2 Clear Creek Sports Club at Rolling Hills Casino in Corning is registering for its Thursday evening fall sporting clays league. Teams consist of five members, For more informa- tion call Brad at 520-9464. SPORTING CLAYS Clear Creek to host autumn league Couldn't find the game results you were looking for? Check out our website for additional sports stories, both national and local, about your favorite local teams and more. ON THE WEB Find late breaking sports online REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM/SPORTS Get your puzzles fix with the NEA Crossword, 7Little Words and Celebrity Cipher, start your day off right with your horoscope, and read the latest advice dolled out by Carolyn Hax. YOUR DAILY BREAK Fun and games inside today SEE PAGE B3 By Jerry McDonald Bay Area News Group OXNARD It was a training camp practice for the Raiders unlike any in recent memory. A joint session with the Dal- las Cowboys on Tuesday after- noon at their circus-like com- plex at the River Ridge Mar- riott brought all the intensity coach Dennis Allen had hoped for – and then some. Besides 8,326 fans, the vast majority of which were adorned in silver and black, Magic Johnson and Tommy Lasorda showed up. What they witnessed was something considerably more electric than the usual drab mid-August practice session. There was crisp hitting, probably a little more than Al- len and Cowboys coach Jason Garrett had in mind. There were two scuffles, which de- lighted the crowd as much as the on-field action. When Dallas cornerback Maurice Claiborne put a lick on Raiders tight end Mychal Rivera that was excessive by any training camp standard, the teams engaged in a spir- ited skirmish. Fullback Marcel Reece was first on the scene, flying in to mix it up. "I'm proud of every single one of my guys,'' Reece said. "That's how you've got to do it. And it's not about fighting. It's about having each other's backs. It's about us taking care of each other, playing the game the right way.'' NFL TRAINING CAMP Ra id er s, C ow bo ys s cu ffle a t jo in t pr ac ti ce JAE C. HONG — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Dallas Cowboys linebacker Kyle Wilber, right, grabs Oakland Raiders strong safety Tyvon Branch's helmet during a joint football practice on Tuesday in Oxnard. SPORTS » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, August 13, 2014 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B1