Junior Midgets also win, but three other teams fall
HOLLISTER
The Oak Grove Razorbacks have won two of the last three league Pee Wee football championships, and five of the last seven. They came into town on Saturday undefeated, as usual, to take on the undefeated Hollister Vikings. When the dust settled at Andy Hardin Stadium, the Vikings were on the top end of a 12-8 score, and still standing as one of only three undefeated Pee Wee teams. It was the first time since the multi-division system started that Hollister has beaten Oak Grove’s best team in league play, and it fundamentally changed the course of the race for the top spot because Oak Grove is now no longer the team to beat.
The Hollister defense established its dominance early in the contest as Chris Cook, Tyler Fhurong, Jordan Goldstein, Russell Enz, Tyler Biersdorff, Cody Freitas and Enrique Rodriguez made big tackles to stop the first couple Oak Grove drives.
The Vikings offense struck quickly, as Fhurong hit Cook with a 76-yard touchdown pass to put the Vikings up 6-0. Hollister forced a fumble on Oak Grove’s next possession, which was recovered by Freitas, but the Razorbacks held the Vikings offense in check.
The defensive battle continued when Bryan Noble stuffed a run on third-and-20 and Oak Grove punted yet again. The Vikings offense began moving the ball, getting good chunks of yards from running backs Brandon Olivares, Greg Steinbeck and Cook. But time was running down in the half and so the Vikings went back to the air, and Fhurong struck again, hitting Cook with a 17-yard strike to make it fourth-and-one on the 15-yard line with six seconds left. Hollister stunned the Razorback defense by calling a running play; Cook took a direct snap and ran around the left side of the line, breaking several Oak Grove tackles for a touchdown to put the Vikings up 12-0 at the half.
Oak Grove finally got a drive going in the third quarter, marching the ball into Hollister territory, but tackles by Cook, Freitas, Phillip Castro, Goldstein, and a fourth-down tackle by Noble ended the threat.
Hollister gave the Razorbacks an opportunity by fumbling the ball, but the defense remained strong, as a Cook sack brought up fourth down and Freitas knocked an Oak Grove runner – and the runner’s mouthpiece – out of bounds to stop that drive.
Late in the game, with Hollister playing a prevent defense, Oak Grove finally put together a scoring drive but used up most of the quarter to do it, crossing the goal line with only 23 seconds remaining in the contest. The Razorbacks’ last hope was dashed moments later when Rodriguez recovered the onside kick with 22 seconds left.
Now Hollister faces an even tougher challenge when the East Bay Wolfpack, currently considered the strongest team in the league, comes to town on Saturday at 5 p.m. to face the Vikings. The winner will have the inside track to the top seed for postseason play.
Junior Midget
Hollister Vikings 23
Almaden Mustangs 0
Hollister’s Junior Midgets registered their second consecutive shutout win on Saturday night, using strong play by both the offensive and defensive lines to dominate the visiting Mustangs.
Although their starting right tackle, Aaron Martinez, was out with a knee injury, his replacement Morgan Worsham joined Tyler Tobia, Louie Aceves, Aaron Tobia, Dominic Padilla and Damon Perez to keep the offensive line dominant. The defense created turnovers and held strong in the red zone on four different occasions to prevent a Mustang score.
Almaden threatened right from the opening kickoff as their speed-burner returned it 60 yards to give the Mustangs a first down on Hollister’s 26. But big backfield tackles by Lionel Munguia and Damien Botelho forced Almaden into a passing situation, and safety Austin Wahl broke up a pass play on third-and-long.
Just as they had the week before, the Vikings used a dominant running game to set up critical pass plays that kept the defense guessing. Quarterback Austin Wahl was 4-for-4 passing, and the Viking running backs racked up big yards throughout the game. Halfback Cody Cameron was the critical part of the Vikings’ first drive, catching a 13-yard pass from Wahl and then going around the left side for a 69-yard touchdown run. Angel Pasillas kicked it through the uprights to put the Vikings ahead, 8-0.
Almaden threatened again with two long runs to get a first down at the Vikings 11, but Zack Hicks and Pasillas made two big tackles and on fourth down, Wahl stepped up to plug a hole in the middle and stop the Mustangs runner short of the goal line. The Mustangs forced a quick Hollister punt, and moments later, were knocking on the door again with a first down at the Hollister 9.
Again, the Vikings stepped up with big tackles by Munguia and Benjy Devries to force third-and-long. On the next two plays, the Viking defensive line applied heavy pressure. On fourth down, Hicks got to the quarterback as he threw, forcing an errant pass that was intercepted by Cameron and returned 30 yards. Hollister tried to capitalize on the turnover as wingback Steven Morales rushed for 34 yards on three carries, with halfback Eddie Macias providing critical blocks downfield, and fullbacks Botelho and Hicks moved the ball another 20 yards. With time running out in the first half, Wahl threw an out route to tight end Damon Perez for a 15-yard gain, but the Mustangs tackled him short of the goal line to keep the score 8-0 as the clock ran out.
The second half began badly for Hollister as they fumbled the ball away twice, once on the kickoff and once on their first play from scrimmage. But both times, the defense rose to the occasion, preventing an Almaden first down as good tackles by Hicks, Cameron and Austin Tobia forced Mustang punts.
After Hicks returned a Mustang punt to the 50-yard line, Cameron and Wahl delivered long runs to give the Vikings a first-and-goal. On the next play, Wahl dropped back and found Perez in the corner of the end zone for another Viking touchdown. During the point-after, a bad snap forced kicker John Canes to evade defenders as he sought out a receiver. He found one in Wahl, who was the holder, and Wahl trucked his way through to find the end zone for the extra point and a 15-0 Viking lead.
The Mustangs got yet another breakaway run, and only a great sideline tackle by Pasillas saved a touchdown. But once again, the Hollister defense stiffened in the red zone as Tyler Tobia got a quarterback sack on first down, and Perez made a big hit on a fourth down sweep to preserve the shutout.
The Vikings got an insurance score after a Cameron’s second interception on the Mustangs’ next series. Hollister capitalized on the takeaway as Wahl again hooked up with Perez for a 57-yard pass play to put the Vikings on the 13-yard line. An eight-yard run by Pasillas to the 1-yard line set up the off-tackle run by fullback Hicks to punch it in for the touchdown. Canes converted the two-point conversion to bring the final score to 23-0.
Junior Pee Wee
East Bay Wranglers 19
Hollister Vikings 7
The Junior Pee Wees dropped their second straight game despite outstanding defensive play. At the start of the game, it appeared that Hollister would dominate the Wranglers as Matthew Rabago, Dominic Barrios and Andrew Huaracha made big tackles to pin East Bay back deep. Hollister got the ball on the Wrangler’s 18, and halfback RJ Clark tossed the ball to Austin Cascio for a 17-yard gain. On the next play, Clark went over from the 1, then got into the end zone again on a one-point conversion to make the score 7-0 Hollister.
The Vikings defensive heroics continued as Shraee Harrison saved a touchdown with a tackle after a long East Bay run, and Tommy Ford and Jose Rodriguez made backfield tackles to force fourth down. Justin Sanders made another big tackle on fourth down, giving Hollister the ball. But moments later, the Vikings fumbled it away and this time, East Bay capitalized as a successful sweep gave them a first-and-goal at the 7. Hollister’s defense stood up to deny the Wranglers the end zone on three successive downs as Rabago, Clark and Ezzie Lovato made big tackles, but finally on fourth-and-two, the Wranglers found the goal line. A big tackle by Ford on the extra point play kept the Vikings in the lead by one point.
Hollister’s offense began moving again after the kickoff as Harrison had two good runs for a first down, but East Bay stiffened, forcing another punt. The Wranglers broke a long run just before halftime to take the lead 12-7.
Hollister’s offense sprung to life again in the third quarter as Cascio got six yards on a sweep, and Huaracha gained 22 yards on third down to give the Vikings a first down in Wrangler territory. But once again the Vikings fumbled opportunity away, and the Wranglers capitalized immediately as their halfback ran 80 yards on the next play to make the score 19-7.
Mitey Mite Purple
East Bay War Eagles 24
Hollister Vikings 0
The War Eagles defense harangued the Vikings all day, and they were unable to move the ball offensively. The defense held East Bay off in the first half as Nick Perez and Nathan Fhurong made fumble recoveries, and Hunter Nye, Tristan Wahl and Darius Parks contributed big backfield tackles. But the defense was worn down by the second half, and the War Eagles ran away with the contest from that point.
Mitey Mite Gold
Oak Grove Rush 30
Hollister Vikings 6
Hollister began the game as if they would dominate their opponents as Jacob Ryder took a handoff and ran 56 yards for a Viking touchdown only a minute into the contest. Moments later, Ryder once again helped his team out by recovering a fumble to stop what little momentum Oak Grove could muster, but the Rush defense kept the Vikings out of the end zone.
Hollister’s punt was returned by Oak Grove, but Matthew Griffith saved a touchdown with a great tackle. Griffith, Antonio Caro and Dylan Olivares made backfield tackles to hold the Oak Grove running game in check, but midway through the second quarter, the Rush finally scored on a long run to tie the game.
Big tackles by Markie Martinez, Marcus Guevara, Oliveras and Ryder helped contain the next Oak Grove series, but the Rush broke another long run to go up 12-6 at halftime.
In the second half, the Rush began moving touchdown-saving tackles on long Oak Grove runs, but they only postponed the inevitable as the Rush went on to score three more times to make the final score 30-6.
Tiny Mites
The Tiny Mites also played Saturday against the East Bay Wheels, and they continued to play well on offense as Ernesto Sanchez and Matthew Hernandez had great runs and Javier Valdez passed to Sanchez for 20 yards. Andrew Casarez made several good tackles including one for a 10-yard loss behind the line of scrimmage on the Wheels first play.
The Hollister Vikings will be at home this Saturday to take on the East Bay Warriors from Oakland. East Bay may be Hollister’s prime nemesis at the Pee Wee level as both teams are undefeated, and their Junior Midgets have the same 2-1 record as the Hollister Junior Midgets.
Games begin at 9:45 a.m., with the Pee Wees kick-off at 5 p.m. and the Junior Midgets at 7 p.m.
