The faraway looks and soggy eyes said it all — this one hurt the deepest.
Poised to repeat as Central Coast Section Division I champions, the San Benito High football team was undone by an avalanche of turnovers — five in all — en route to a 37-23 loss to Milpitas on Friday at Rabobank Stadium in Salinas.
“The turnovers really killed us,” said Haybalers tailback Zak Hicks, who rushed for a team-high 110 yards on 19 carries, including touchdown runs of 17, 1 and 2 yards. “They just killed us.”
Indeed, fourth-seeded San Benito (7-6) couldn’t put the finishing touches on another spectacular season-ending run like it did in 2012, when it won five of its last six games to capture the DI championship.
For a while, though, the Balers looked as if they were going to win the seventh section title in program history. After falling behind 14-3, San Benito came roaring back with 13 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a two-point lead into halftime.
However, second-seeded Milpitas (11-2) answered with 16 unanswered points of their own in the third to take a lead it would never relinquish. Although turnovers proved to play a critical part in the game, it was the Balers’ inability to run the ball in the second half that proved just as vital to the outcome.
San Benito totaled 200 yards of offense in the first half, but only 105 the rest of the way. Milpitas, in contrast, had just 153 yards at halftime, but exploded for 260 in the final two quarters.
Most of the Trojans’ offense came from the legs of Squally Canada, who gouged the San Benito defense for 230 yards on 33 carries, including TD runs of 31, 6, 3 and 7 yards. It often took several Baler defenders to bring down the 6-foot, 190-pound senior.
“That No. 5 kid (Canada) is a freaking stud,” Balers coach Chris Cameron said.
Although San Benito finished with five turnovers to Milpitas’ two, the Trojans only had a 14-7 edge in points off turnovers. The Trojans were also flagged a whopping 15 times for 118 yards, while the Balers were penalized seven times for 47 yards.
San Benito got to within 30-23 on the very first play of the fourth quarter on Hicks’ 2-yard TD run, but that’s as close as it would get. Despite often bending, San Benito’s defense made several nice stops to put the Balers in position for the tying touchdown.
However, the Trojans’ Christian Rita intercepted a David Stanton pass and returned it 40 yards to the San Benito 44-yard line with 8:10 remaining in the game. Seven plays later, Royce Kim scored from 6 yards out to account for the final score with 4:58 left.
Tre Hartley came up with Milpitas’ third pick of the game on the Balers’ ensuing possession to clinch the outcome.
“Milpitas was the better team,” Cameron said. “Good teams take advantage of opportunities, and they did that to us tonight. We didn’t play a perfect game, and we ended up paying for it.”
Stanton, who rushed for 63 yards on nine carries, completed 11-of-21 passes for 86 yards with three interceptions. Despite the loss, Cameron said his players achieved plenty this season.
“You learn a lot about yourself from the start to the end of the season,” Cameron said. “And what I learned about these guys is they never quit, and they could overcome adversity. Our kids played well, they endured some bumps early, and we got better as the season went along. Of course it would’ve been nice to win this game, but I’ve got no regrets.”
