Hollister takes Three of Four from Redwood City
Coach Larry Murphy has always put perseverance high on the list of qualities that he wants to instill in his players. So he couldn’t have been happier with Saturday’s game as he watched his boys overcome many obstacles to earn a hard-fought win against a previously undefeated Redwood City team.
From the opening kickoff, Redwood City made it clear that they were every bit on par with the Vikings, who had steamrolled four previous teams by a combined score of 114-18. Hollister’s defense, short two starters, dug in early against the Redwood City attack as the Vikings forced a fumble that was recovered by Austin Blake. Along with Blake, Junior Davila, Isaiah Navarette, Tyler Pina, Mark Neal and Jonathan Huaracha anchored a defense that consistently made big plays to stop Redwood City drives every time they started moving the ball.
Offensively, quarterback Tyler Decker had a hot hand early, completing a couple passes including one to Justin Raine that got the Vikings deep into 49er territory. But then disaster struck as Raine’s next pass into a stiff wind was intercepted to end the Vikings drive. Hollister’s defense turned disaster into opportunity however, as they pinned Redwood City deep, giving the ball back to their offense with a short field.
Two good gains by Nathan Castro and two completed passes by Decker to Navarette and Neal gave the Vikings a first and goal. The 49er defense stiffened, but on 4th & goal, Raine scored from the three to give Hollister a 6-0 lead. That score stood up until the fourth quarter, when the 49ers mounted a long drive to tie the game. Time was a factor as Hollister got the ball back. Once again they were denied a first down as Redwood City’s defense dug in to thwart the Vikings attack. But the Vikings played the field position game, and a nice punt by Jared Lantis pinned Coastside back deep.
Hollister’s defense forced a quick punt, which was returned by Navarette deep into 49er territory.
Castro had another long tackle-breaking run to give Hollister a first down on the 12. But the Redwood City defense stiffened, and two plays later, the Vikings faced third and six. Hollister exploited the 49ers stacked defense as Decker threw a shovel pass to Raine in the open look-in zone, who ran 10 yards untouched into the end zone to give the Vikings the lead with 3:17 remaining. Tyler Pina’s conversion kick made it 14-6. Redwood City would have one last chance, but the Vikings defense wreaked havoc on the 49ers, and on fourth down, Ryan DiSalvo pressured a bad throw by the 49er quarterback, resulting in an incomplete pass and a Viking win.
Midget
Hollister Vikings 30 Redwood City 49ers 0
Halfway into the season, the Midget Vikings remain undefeated, untied and unscored upon. Hollister jumped on their opponents early and often as Adrian Perez recovered a fumble on the 49ers opening possession that led to Hollister’s first score as Felix Cortez passed to Brandon Pina, and then Anthony Flores ran the ball in from the eight yard line. Gilberto Lizarraga’s two-point kick gave Hollister an 8-0 lead.
Flores recovered a fumble on defense when Redwood City got the ball back, and carried it into the end zone from 20 yards out to make it 14-0. Flores recovered another fumble on the 49ers next possession, but Redwood City mounted its only successful defensive stand of the night, keeping Hollister out of the end zone. The next 49er series ended in an interception by Chris Martinez, and the Vikings capitalized as Nick Acosta scored on a 3-yard run.
Luis Bradley made a huge hit on the kickoff to knock the ball loose, which went out of bounds on the one yard line. The Vikings got a safety on fourth down as Furry Lopez made a tackle in the end zone. After getting the ball back, Hollister added one last score as Paul Casarez scored on a 44-yard burst up the middle to close the scoring. Hollister’s defense kept the shutout intact in the second half as Brian Sanders had a big sack to stop one 49er drive, and Joshua Martinez and Mitchell Eckard forced big losses behind the line of scrimmage. Cortez intercepted a pass to end the 49ers last chance.
Junior Pee Wee
Redwood City 49ers 13 Hollister Vikings 0
The Vikings started the game by recovering four fumbles on the first four 49er possessions. Mikey Koroluk recovered a Redwood City fumble on the kickoff, Chris Greenwood picked up a loose ball when the 49er offense finally got possession, Austin Nye pounced on a fumble to end Redwood City’s next series, and Austin Canez recovered a fumble early in the second quarter.
Unfortunately, the Vikings could not convert any of those breaks into scores of their own as they were shut out for the third consecutive week. When they finally did hold onto the ball, Redwood City passed for a touchdown that would give them all the points they needed. Hollister’s defense fought heroically to keep the game close as Marcus Darnell made many tackles, Nye registered a big sack to stop one 49er drive and Trevor Tresch recovered yet another fumble late in the game.
Mighty Mite
Hollister Vikings 28 Redwood City 49ers 7
The Mighty Mites rolled to an easy win over a good team as the defense stepped up early. Enrique Rodriguez, Ezzie Lovato and John Canes made tackles to give the Hollister offense good field position for their first drive.
It didn’t matter much as Chris Cook broke away from the pack for a 53-yard touchdown run on the Vikings first series of downs. Redwood City’s offense came alive and began marching downfield, but an incredible stop by Dacoda Miracle on a breakaway 49er runner saved a certain touchdown, and gave the Vikings the ball on their own 3 The Vikings entered the second period with their shutout intact, and Tyler Fhurong dashed 62 yards to paydirt, capping a 97-yard drive.
Moments later, a fumble recovery by Braulio Ornelas gave Hollister another chance, and Johnny Corral cashed the check, scoring for Hollister on the second of two consecutive good runs to make it 21-0. A fumble recovery late in the second half by Dominic Padilla stopped another Redwood City drive, and Corral’s interception in the third quarter thwarted yet another. After Viking quarterback Joshua George had burned Redwood City for a 63-yard run early in the fourth quarter, Dylan Yamasaki added an insurance touchdown with an eight yard run.
The Tiny Mites played a team from Andrew Hill in their game, and the defense excelled as Juan Gutierrez, Nick Trimble, Brody Cascio and BJ Quintana all made significant hits. Trimble also recovered a fumble for Hollister. All Hollister teams play in San Jose this weekend. For specific teams venues and game times, check the Hollister website at www.eteamz.com/HollisterPopWarner.
