Hollister squad takes out Redwood City 49ers, a previously
undefeated team, with some solid defense and consistent offense
The Hollister Vikings took on a previously undefeated Redwood City 49ers team on Saturday night, and put the league on notice that they will be a force to be reckoned with in their highly competitive division. It was the third straight shutout for Hollister’s defense, who made sure that the game went their team’s way by wreaking havoc at the line of scrimmage, and closing up holes before they could open up. Adrian Perez snuffed out a reverse for an eight yard loss in Redwood City’s opening series, and Michael Murphy sacked the quarterback.
Redwood City’s defense bent, but didn’t break on Hollister’s first two possessions, but Anthony Flores and Murphy got the ground game going early in the second quarter, as Flores ran for a first down, then Murphy burst up the middle for a 20-yard run to put the ball in 49ers territory. Unfortunately, it was Murphy’s last run for the evening as he was speared at the end of the play, and had to be helped from the field. A pass from Felix Cortez to Joshua Martinez put the ball on the 35, and from there, the offense stalled briefly, unable to gain a yard in three plays. But on 4th & 10, Flores burned down the right side, breaking several tackles on his way to a touchdown.
Gilberto Lizarraga added a two-point kick to give Hollister an 8-0 lead. The defense continued to pummel Redwood City as Nick Acosta recovered a fumble on the 49ers next possession, and Eric Sanders, Furry Lopez & Perez contained the 49ers explosive outside running attack. Finally Redwood City turned to the pass, and found the Vikings secondary ready and able to defend their turf.
Luis Bradley had perhaps the best day of his three-year Pop Warner career, breaking up several passes. Brandon Pina broke up a bomb, and safety Cortez also denied a pass completion. Having been denied any success through the air, Redwood City tried a power sweep on 4th and 10, and Lizarraga & Flores made the tackle after a short gain to give the ball back to Hollister. Early in the fourth quarter, the Viking offense found a soft spot in the Redwood City line, and Acosta, spelling Murphy at the fullback position, took advantage, getting several good runs to give the Vikes a first down on the seven.
Two plays later, Flores scored from the three, and Lizarraga’s kick gave the Vikings the insurance score they had been looking for. Any hopes of a 49er come back were dashed on the ensuing kickoff, when Sanders forced a fumble with a huge hit on the returner. Bradley recovered, allowing the Vikings to run out the clock and savor their 16-0 win.
Junior Midget
Coastside Raiders 14 Hollister Vikings 12
Hollister rallied for two touchdowns in the fourth quarter, but their comeback effort fell just a little bit short. From the opening kickoff, it was clear that defenses would dominate this contest. Matt Martinez registered two big hits for Hollister, one on a punt return and one in the Coastside backfield. Cooper Sepulveda and Josh Villegas made big tackles to stop Raider runs, and James Flook stopped a quarterback sneak on fourth down to get the ball back for his team. Unfortunately for the Vikings, Coastside’s defense was just as tough, and made getting even a first down difficult.
The teams punted back and forth to each other several times, and finally the Raiders turned one of those into a touchdown on an electrifying punt return. Hollister kicked off to begin the second half, and Sepulveda achieved a rare feat by recovering his own onside kick.
The break yielded no fruit however, as the Coastside defense dug in, and forced a quick punt. After the Raiders had gotten another long touchdown to go up 14-0, the game finally turned on a big hit by Jordan Ashford that forced a fumble, which Hollister recovered just before the third quarter ended. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Viking halfback Andre Cornell shook off several tackles at the line of scrimmage and raced 42 yards to paydirt.
Coastside responded with a drive of their own, but Cornell intercepted a pass to get the ball back for the Vikings. Two plays later, Cornell swept outside and burned 76 yards to a touchdown. But Hollister could not convert, and the Raiders still led by two with six minutes to play. The Viking defense made sure that the offense got their opportunities. Villegas recovered a fumble on Coastside’s next series, but Coastside’s defense adjusted to stop the outside runs, and Hollister could not move the ball. A big defensive stop by Daniel Gutierrez on the Raiders next series was followed by a fumble, which Anthony Munoz recovered to give the Vikings one last chance. But Coastside intercepted a Hollister pass to put the game on ice.
Pee Wee
Hollister Vikings 24 Coastside Buccaneers 0
The Pee Wee Vikings fired on all cylinders Saturday afternoon, as both the offense and the defense performed flawlessly for a 24-0 win. Justin Raine spearheaded the Vikings effort on both sides of the ball, catching several passes and making several good runs as a fullback, and he played like a man on fire on defense to lead the team in tackles, including three in a row on a critical Coastside series early in the game. Raine played a big part in the Vikings first score, catching three consecutive passes from quarterback Tyler Decker to give Hollister a first and goal on the one. From there, Decker snuck over the goal line, and Tyler Pina added a two point kick to make it 8-0 Hollister.
Coach Murphy decided he wanted his offense to keep the ball, so he tried an onside kick which was recovered by Junior Davila. This time, Hollister attacked on the ground, as good runs by Mark Neal, Nate Garza and Decker moved the ball to the 10. Decker returned to the air and hit a wide-open Jared Lantis in the end zone to make it 14-0 Vikings.
When Coastside finally did get the ball back, they couldn’t do much with it. Isaiah Navarette leveled the Bucs quarterback with a huge hit, and Darin Hopkins and Adrian Soto made life miserable for Coastside ballcarriers. Hollister got the ball back just before halftime and scored in dramatic fashion as Davila launched a 65-yard pass to Nate Garza on the halfback option. Pina’s kick made it 22-0 at halftime.
The Viking defense continued to punish the Buccaneers in the second half as Jonathan Huaracha made himself a fixture in Coastside’s backfield, and Austin Blake registered a quarterback sack. Huaracha & Lantis combined for a QB sack in the end zone late in the contest to score two points.
Jr. Pee Wee
Oak Grove Rage 6 Hollister Vikings 0
Trevor Tresch, Austin Nye and Damon Perez spearheaded a great defensive effort by Hollister, contributing several tackles each. Chris Greenwood and Eddie Munoz also made their share of big plays defensively. However, the Hollister offense was quagmired by a ferocious Oak Grove defense, and suffered their second consecutive shutout.
Mighty Mite
Hollister Vikings 30 Oak Grove Roadrunners 6
The Mighty Mites dominated their opponents on both sides of the ball to roll to a convincing win. Oak Grove got the ball first, but it was soon in Hollister’s hands courtesy of a fumble recovery by Aaron Tobia.
The Roadrunners soon had the ball back, but Dylan Yamasaki and Russell Enz combined for a big quarterback sack to force a punt. Chris Cook took that punt and raced 53 yards for the game’s first score. Hollister decided to keep the ball, and Johnny Corral recovered the onside kick. Moments later, Cook was in the end zone again on a 37-yard dash from scrimmage. Hollister got the ball back quickly as Danny Perez recovered a fumble, and Tyler Fhurong scored the first of his two touchdowns by racing 40 yards on a quarterback sweep.
The Hollister defense forced yet another fumble on Oak Grove’s next possession, which was scooped up by Alex Reilly. In the third quarter, Hollister’s defense stepped up to preserve the lead as Clay Schwall saved a certain touchdown with a downfield tackle, and Cody Freitas and Andrew Lopez forced losses in the backfield. The offense got back in scoring mode in the fourth quarter as Johnny Corral raced 58 yards to paydirt.
After a fumble recovery by JC Canes gave the Vikings the ball deep in Roadrunner territory, Fhurong snuck over from the three to end the scoring.
The Tiny Mites took on Oak Grove on Saturday morning as well. Andres Soto gave a clinic on making open-field tackles, demonstrating his technique several times and saving long gains in the process. Markie Martinez also had some nice stops, and Kyle Cameron had a 50-yard run to the goal line.
Hollister plays host to Redwood City this weekend, games begin at 10 AM at Andy Hardin Stadium.
