‘Balers hope to extend winning streak over SLV to three
tonight
Hollister – With a win tonight, they’ll be sitting pretty. But the ‘Balers know that a 2-0 start to the football season won’t come easily.
San Lorenzo Valley is coming to town with a huge chip on its shoulder. The Cougars, winners of three Central Coast Section titles since 1999, have lost to San Benito two years in a row. Last season, after suffering a 28-21 opening-game loss to the ‘Balers in Felton, SLV ran the table all the way to the Open Division playoffs, before falling in the first round to Palma.
San Benito (1-0) knows it will have its hands full trying to fend off a bigger opponent that is trying to avoid consecutive losses to start the year. The Cougars opened the 2006 season by hosting CCS behemoth Valley Christian last week, taking a 3-0 lead into the fourth quarter before succumbing 17-10.
“They need a win,” ‘Balers head coach Chris Cameron said of the Cougars. “They don’t want to be in a position where they’re 0-2. They’re coming in here raring to go.”
San Benito, which defeated Aptos 24-20 on the road on Sep. 1, has two chief concerns heading into its home opener – SLV’s size and its deception plays.
“Big guys,” three-year linebacker Nate Mendoza answered when asked what came to mind when he thought of the Cougars. “Really big guys and a lot of trick plays. They’ve been running a lot of trick plays on us the last couple of years and we’ve really got to watch out for them.”
Said ‘Balers offensive coordinator Rick Dukes: “They throw every trick play in the book at you.”
“They’ve got guys coming all over the field,” noted defensive coordinator Tod Thatcher, who expects the Cougars to run reverses, toss passes and screen plays.
And after being victimized by two big Aptos gains last week, which fueled the Mariners’ comeback from a 10-0 deficit, San Benito can expect SLV to attempt the home-run play as well. “They’re going to take their deep shots,” Cameron said. “Hell, we gave up a couple of deep shots last week, so I know they’re going to test us.”
After finishing with just 138 total offensive yards in falling to Valley Christian, San Lorenzo Valley is no doubt eager to re-establish the offense that helped lead the Cougars to the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League championship last season. But SLV, much like San Benito, has a history of bruising defense, too, and managed to hold the four-time defending CCS champion Warriors to 212 yards and 11 first downs on offense last week.
“They’re going to be a big, strong team,” said Cameron, whose ‘Balers also defeated SLV 13-7 in Hollister in 2004. “That’s a concern of mine. To me, we have to keep the game close to have a chance to win in the fourth quarter.”
As usual, the ‘Balers hope that their superior conditioning will pay off as their opponent begins to fade late in the game. That strategy worked to perfection last week when San Benito overcame a late 20-17 deficit with a bruising, fourth-quarter drive to eventually top Aptos.
“We definitely want to play an up-tempo game,” Dukes said. “(Our conditioning) gives our smaller kids an advantage in the fourth quarter against a bigger opponent that’s tired.”
Offensive lineman Dan Gallant, who has been apart of the ‘Balers’ two straight triumphs over SLV, agreed: “This week, we’ve been hearing these guys are big. We just need to get into it with these guys and then by the fourth quarter, they’ll be dead. That’s when all this conditioning pays off.”
After trailing the Cougars 14-0 just minutes into their battle last season and down 21-12 at the half, San Benito responded with a late comeback to hand SLV its only regular-season loss. With the Cougars already behind the eight ball despite their admirable defensive performance against Valley Christian, the ‘Balers know tonight’s contest will be a doozy.
“They need a victory badly,” Thatcher said, “and it ain’t happenin’ on our field.”
FROSH:
The San Benito freshmen football team remained unbeaten on the season, tying San Lorenzo Valley at 14-14 Thursday night in Hollister. Defense ruled in the fourth quarter, with both teams’ offenses stymied as the clock wound down.
The ‘Balers (1-0-1) took an 8-6 lead into the half on the heels of an8-yard touchdown run by halfback Niko Hebert. San Benito lined up for the PAT, but kicker Nick Acosta instead passed to Robert Pinedo for a 2-point conversion. Late in the third quarter, defensive back Andre Cornell stepped in front of a Cougars’ pass and returned the interception half the field for a touchdown. San Benito missed the 2-point attempt and, with a late defensive stand, settled for the tie.
“The fourth quarter was back and forth,” coach Randy Logue said. “Each team had an opportunity to score, but nobody did. It was a very competitive game.”
