East Union High School’s senior night was thrown into chaos Friday when copper thieves stripped the stadium wiring and killed the lights hours before kickoff.
The Manteca, California, school had to yank its final regular-season home game against crosstown rival Manteca to another district stadium with almost no warning, sending players and their families scrambling. Mindy Martinez, whose son has played football since he was 5, learned about the disaster through a parent group chat after the coach sent word.
“It was sad because obviously it’s senior night and you wanted to play home field,” Martinez told KCRA.
Her son told her the seniors were devastated. “And then it was just like, okay, what do we do now?”
The theft hit families who had arranged their lives around the milestone. Eleshea Bass, an East Union alumna, had relatives who traveled from across the country to watch her family member take the field. “We got people from the Bay. My sister from Virginia came down,” Bass said.
The news floored her. “At first, I’m not going to lie. I kind of dropped the phone when I read it, like, oh my God, we aren’t going to have a game tonight.”
The Lancers announced the relocation in a social media post that blamed vandalism at Dino Cunial Stadium. “Due to vandalism at our stadium, we are unable to host tonight’s football game at East Union High School,” the post read. “We sincerely appreciate your understanding, patience and flexibility as we navigate this unexpected situation.”
The Manteca Bulletin later reported that the real culprit was copper wiring theft, not simple vandalism. Stripped wiring had crippled the stadium’s lighting system entirely.
Manteca Unified School District confirmed the theft forced the move but stayed tight-lipped about the extent of the damage or when Dino Cunial Stadium would host games again. “East Union High School’s varsity football game scheduled for this evening has been relocated to another MUSD stadium following a theft which impacted the lighting at the high school,” the district told the outlet.
The district added that it was working with police while operations staff tried to repair the site. “District administration is currently coordinating with local law enforcement while operations staff is diligently responding to the site damage to restore the stadium,” the statement continued.
The relocated game proved a nightmare on the field as well as off it. Stripped of home-field advantage and their carefully planned senior night ceremonies, the Lancers were demolished by Manteca in a 49-0 blowout that capped one of the worst Fridays in program memory.
Copper theft has plagued California school districts and public infrastructure for years, with thieves targeting electrical systems, air conditioning units, and stadium wiring for quick scrap metal cash. The damage often far exceeds the value of the stolen copper, leaving institutions with repair bills in the tens of thousands and events canceled on short notice.
The district has not announced whether any suspects have been identified or when the stadium lights will be restored for future games.