For a San Benito High football team who has advanced to the
Central Coast Section championship game six out of the past seven
years, Friday’s loss to Piedmont Hills in the playoff opener came
as a bit of a shock.
Hollister – For a San Benito High football team who has advanced to the Central Coast Section championship game six out of the past seven years, Friday’s loss to Piedmont Hills in the playoff opener came as a bit of a shock.
As the top seed in the CCS Large School Division, there was obviously a lot of hope for the ‘Balers to repeat as champs.
While the 21-14 loss ends that possibility, the season still goes down as a successful one for a team that entered the year with far less expectations.
“I think this team really worked themselves into being a competitive team,” coach Chris Cameron said. “They came farther than I would’ve thought back in August.”
The last time San Benito, which has an all-time CCS playoff record of 23-11, lost in the first round was 1999. The only time over the past seven years that the ‘Balers did not reach the title game was in 2002, when they finished 4-5-1 and out of the playoffs.
That makes the loss even more difficult for this group of seniors, which has known nothing else except reaching the CCS finals. With 24 seniors on the roster bidding their farewell, it was an emotional scene for the players after the game.
“It’s hurts, especially for our senior kids,” Cameron said. “They start thinking, ‘I’m never going to do this again.’ … Once it’s over, you don’t get it back.
“There are more lessons learn on this field than any (Advanced Placement) class on this campus,” he added.
The second half of Friday’s game showed why the ‘Balers had been so tough this season. Despite falling down 14-0 in a first half where nothing seemed to go right for San Benito, it managed to bounce back quickly.
Less than two minutes into the third quarter, quarterback Ronnie Fhurong bootlegged around the right end for a touchdown to make it a one-score deficit.
The defense responded by forcing a pair of punts before the ‘Balers put it in the end zone again to tie the game up on a Tim Lango touchdown run.
That ended up being the final hurrah for a San Benito team that never lost a game by more than seven points all season, including a 21-17 loss to West Catholic Athletic League power Bellarmine and a 28-21 defeat to Tri-County Athletic League champion Palma.
“This was a team that competed week in and week out,” Cameron said.
