Junior midgets top Cambrian Valley Longhorns 26-18; junior pee
wees rebound against South Valley
HOLLISTER
Four Hollister teams prevailed this weekend against their opponents, including two which rebounded from tough losses last weekend, and a mighty mite team which won for the first time this year.
A recap of this weekend’s action:
Junior Midget
Hollister Vikings 26, Cambrian Valley Longhorns 18
The Viking junior midgets, which had offensive problems two weeks ago and defensive struggles last week, finally put it all together in a thrilling 26-18 win over Cambrian Valley in which the lead changed hands three times.
The defense established itself just after the opening kickoff when Hollister’s Jordan Goldstein recovered a fumble on the third play of the game. The Vikings could not move, however, and Cambrian Valley drew first blood on its next series when a long run set up an early touchdown.
But the Viking offense quickly struck back as Brandon Olivares broke a 45-yard run to paydirt. Olivares also added a two-point point-after kick to give Hollister the 8-6 lead.
Cambrian Valley reclaimed the lead on a 40-yard touchdown run, but Olivares blocked the point-after kick, making the score 12-8 Longhorns.
The Vikings answered when Bryan Noble returned the kickoff 40 yards to set up Hollister deep in Longhorn territory, but Cambrian Valley’s defense again denied the Vikings a score.
But the Viking defense put up a wall as big tackles by Goldstein and Joe Horn forced a punt, and the Vikings took over on their own 45. Moments later, Hollister took the lead again when Joshua George threw an arcing 55-yard touchdown pass to Christopher Cook on the halfback option, giving the Vikings a 14-12 lead.
Cambrian Valley got the ball back into Hollister territory with a minute remaining, but Colin Brody and Dustin Borba made good tackles to thwart their attempt to score before halftime.
Cambrian Valley got the ball to start the second half but two good tackles by Goldstein resulted in a three-and-out for the Longhorns. Hollister got the ball back on its on 42 and went nowhere on the first two plays, but quarterback Tyler Fhurong scrambled for a first down to give the Vikings offense new life.
The Vikings’ offensive line began to control the line of scrimmage as Noble, Borba, Goldstein, Louis Bustilllos, Kenny Lee and Joe Coffelt opened up big holes. George got outside on a sweep for 21 yards, giving the Vikings a first down at the 18. Fhurong then passed to Cook for a first-and-goal at the 5, and Olivares took it in on the next play, giving Hollister a 20-12 lead.
Cambrian Valley then began a long drive that was slowed down by big tackles from Lee and Gage Bryand, but the Longhorns finally scored with five minutes remaining to cut Hollister’s lead to two points.
Cambrian Valley’s defense now stiffened, forcing Hollister three-and-out for the first time in the second half. But the Vikings defense would not bend any further. Alex Copado and Mavrick Enz smothered two big outside runs in succession, which had been the Longhorns’ bread-and-butter play all day long.
Cambrian Valley opted to pass as a result, and Cook intercepted the football with five minutes to play, giving the Vikings the ball on the Longhorns 35. Cook immediately ran for a first down, then Fhurong hit Enz with a 20-yard touchdown pass to put the Vikings back up by eight.
Cambrian Valley still had a chance with three minutes left, however, but a ferocious rush by Goldstein forced a desperation pass that was broken up by Coffelt to end the game and send the Vikings home winners for the second time this year.
Pee Wee
Hollister Vikings 13, Cambrian Valley Longhorns 6
The undefeated Hollister pee wees keep finding ways to win as they prevailed 13-6 over Cambrian Valley in a defensive struggle last weekend.
The Vikings’ offense had a hard time moving the ball for much of the game, especially after an injury to quarterback Daniel Hopkins. But Hollister found a new weapon in punter Esmond Lovato, who booted several punts to keep Cambrian Valley from getting good field position.
The Vikings’ defense, meanwhile, established itself on the game’s first play when Evan Weatherly sacked the Longhorns’ quarterback. Hollister forced a fumble on its next defensive stand, and the loose football was recovered by Jesse Deleon.
The third time the Vikings went on defense, a sack by Tyler Biersdorff forced another Longhorn punt. This one was returned 41 yards by Lovato, giving the Vikings a first down on the Longhorns 23.
Moments later, Austin Cascio electrified the crowd with a 13-yard touchdown run in which he broke several tackles. Biersdorff ran the ball in for the extra point.
Cambrian Valley got a couple more scoring opportunities before halftime, but Phillip Castro made two successive quarterback sacks to smother one drive, while Kyle George forced a big loss on a reverse to end another.
Cambrian Valley made the score 7-6 in the third quarter with a long pass completion, and got the ball back in good field position, but Castro and Andrew Huaracha combined for a big stop on third down to end the series. Weatherly and Biersdorff made big tackles on the Longhorns’ next possession to hold them without a first down.
However, the Vikings had difficulty moving the football, but Lovato made perhaps his best punt of the game – a 34-yarder that pinned the Longhorns back on the 9-yard line. Cascio made a big sack on the Longhorns quarterback as he tried to scramble out of the pocket, forcing a punt from the 1.
Hollister took over and Lovato immediately ran for a first down, then moments later scored on a 2-yard run to give the Vikings a 13-6 lead with 1:23 left.
Cambrian Valley tried to complete a long pass to tie the game, but instead Steve Gatto and Huaracha each sacked the quarterback to seal the win for Hollister.
Mighty Mite Gold
Hollister Vikings 18, Cambrian Valley Longhorns 0
The mighty mite Vikings earned their first win of the season in convincing fashion last weekend, smothering the Longhorns’ attack and scoring three touchdowns for the first time this year en route to an 18-0 victory. More impressively, Hollister accomplished this without two of its best offensive players, but the team proved on Saturday they have a number of players who can play with the best on both sides of the ball.
The Vikings defense dominated their opponents in the first half as Aiden Lyon and Blaze McShane made many good tackles and Markie Martinez recovered a fumble. Jonny Gonzalez and Christopher Leist made a couple good runs after the fumble recovery, but Hollister fumbled the ball away to end the drive.
Leist made the first of several good tackles to stop Cambrian Valley’s outside runs, and Austin Wiggins followed up with a big hit to stop the Longhorns on fourth down, giving the Vikings the ball at the Longhorns 20.
Matthew Trimble then ran 14 yards, setting up a first-and-goal on the 6. Fullback Gonzalez did the rest, powering up the middle for the final six yards and the Vikings’ first lead of the 2009 season.
As it turned out, though, it was all the points Hollister would be need to win the game. The Vikings defense continued to dominate the second half as Kane DeAlba, Lyon, Gonzalez and Matthew Hernandez patrolled the middle of the field, while Leist and Trimble smothered anything to the outside.
The offensive line of DeAlba, Hernandez, Martinez, McShane, Dawson Biersdorff and Allen Reyes gained control of the line of scrimmage, while the offense appeared unstoppable for the first time. Gonzalez and Trimble alternated big gains to the inside and outside, setting up Gonzalez’ second 2-yard touchdown plunge of the game midway through the third quarter.
The Vikings mounted one more impressive drive in the fourth quarter when Trimble ran 13 yards for a first down. Gonzalez then powered 20 yards up the middle, and a quarterback sneak by Ernesto Sanchez gave Hollister a first-and-goal.
Trimble scored on a 1-yard run, and Eric Green put an exclamation point on Hollister’s shutout effort with a quarterback sack to end the Longhorns’ last possession.
Junior Pee Wee Gold
Cambrian Valley Longhorns 20, Hollister Vikings 7
The junior pee wee gold team continued to struggle offensively, but the offense made progress and the defense made some big plays to keep the Vikings in it until the very end. Cambrian Valley won 20-7.
The Longhorns scored on their first possession, but Hunter Nye blocked the kick to keep the score 6-0, and made several big tackles to stop subsequent Longhorn drives.
The Vikings fumbled the ball late in the second quarter and the Longhorns capitalized, scoring their second touchdown of the game. But this time Andres Soto blocked the two-point kick, leaving the score 12-0 Cambrian Valley.
Hollister’s defense shut down Cambrian Valley in the second half as Ishmael Medina recovered a fumble and Tristan Wahl had a big quarterback sack. Late in the game, the Vikings mounted a sustained drive as Medina and David San Miguel both broke loose for good runs, while San Miguel also hauled in a pass from Dylan Oliveras.
San Miguel scored on a 20-yard run and scored again on the point-after to make the score 12-7.
The touchdown broke a three-game scoring drought for the Vikings, and gave them a shot at victory. But the Longhorns got one more touchdown to put the game out of reach. Nevertheless, the Vikings were pleased with the improved play of their offense, especially in the second half.
Junior Pee Wee Purple
Hollister Vikings 27, South Valley Grizzlies 7
The purple Vikings returned to dominant form after a surprising setback last week at West Valley. Up against a winless team, and also because of the heat, head coach Gino Andrade substituted players often, giving everyone a chance to play some new positions.
The Vikings broke on top early after Travis Roy sacked the Grizzlies quarterback and Kyle Cameron forced a fumble in the backfield.
The Viking offense made quick work of South Valley as quarterback Nick Trimble passed to Elijah Changco for six yards, and then Jacob Ryder made two long gallops up the middle to the 20-yard line. Fullback Shraee Harrison ran for a first down to the 12, and Ryder took it to paydirt on the next play.
Jacob Zamora made the first of what his coach hopes will be many two-point kicks, and Hollister led 8-0 as a result.
Changco and Tanner Okerson both made big tackles to get the ball back for Hollister. It only took the Vikings one minute to score again, as Marcus Guevara plowed ahead to the 20 and Cameron scored on a 20-yard scamper. Guevara added a point-after run to make the score 15-0.
In the second quarter, Hollister turned in a team effort on defense, as no fewer than 20 players subbed in and out and all were able to stop the Grizzlies’ attack.
Bobby Vivian and Dyllan Grieg made several stops on runs up the middle, and Mark Rodriguez made a big backfield stop on fourth down, giving Hollister the ball in South Valley territory. The Vikings capitalized on the defensive effort as quarterback Nathan Fhurong ran for 27 yards on first down, setting up a first-and-goal at the 3. Guevara plunged over from there to make the score 21-0 Hollister.
Yet another defensive unit stopped the Grizzlies once more as Johnny Cardinalli and Alexander Garcia turned in several good tackles as the first half ended.
Hollister went up 27-0 on the first play of the second half as Dimarco DelCurto ran 54 yards for a touchdown. South Valley finally made a big play with a breakaway run, but Nick Perez saved a touchdown with a great sideline tackle. But the Grizzlies finally did cross the goal line a few plays later to make it 27-7.
Trimble returned the ensuing kickoff 40 yards, but South Valley’s defense stiffened and the score remained 27-7. The Grizzlies got one more first down, but Mike Casarez recovered a fumble to end that drive. Casarez and Clay Schwall each ran for first downs as the Vikings ran out the clock in the fourth quarter.
Midget
Cambrian Valley Longhorns 30, Hollister Vikings 0
The midget Vikings, beset by injuries, suffered their second consecutive 30-0 defeat last weekend to Cambrian Valley.
Hollister had several big breaks to start the game when the Vikings punted twice, only to have Cambrian Valley muff both punts. Austin Tobia and Max Giacomazzi recovered the miscues to keep possession for their team.
But Hollister could not capitalize as Cambrian Valley intercepted a pass. The Viking defense showed great resistance as Tyler Tobia made a big tackle to stop a Cambrian Valley drive, and then the Longhorns missed a field goal.
Steven Morales broke loose on a 44-yard run to take the Vikings into enemy territory, but the Longhorns’ defense rose up to keep the game scoreless.
The Longhorns finally mounted a long drive against a tiring Viking defense late in the first half, scoring with 2:18 left to play. The Longhorns got the ball back again with 30 seconds remaining and completed a pass to the 2-yard line, but Morales made a one-on-one tackle to deny the Longhorns a score as time expired in the first half.
The Longhorns took control of the game after taking the second half kickoff, however, and scored on a long run to go up 16-0. Cambrian Valley mounted yet another drive late in the third quarter to take a commanding 24-0 lead.
Mighty Mite Purple
Cambrian Valley Longhorns 24, Hollister Vikings 6
Jack Breger scored for the Vikings on an 80-yard run, but otherwise it was all Cambrian Valley as their mighty mite red team won its third consecutive game by a 24-6 margin.
This week, all Hollister football teams are at home and for the first time ever, two Hollister Pop Warner teams will play each other as the mighty mite purple team takes on the mighty mite gold team.
The Hollister vs. Hollister game begins at 9 a.m. at Andy Hardin Stadium.
The Coyote Creek Wildcats, whose junior pee wee, pee wee and midget teams have not even been scored on in the first three weeks of play, will provide worthy competition for the older Hollister teams later in the day.
The Hollister cheerleaders, meanwhile, will have competition of their own at the Peninsula Invitational Saturday at Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View.
