Friday Kevin Abbott rushed for three touchdowns Friday night to
help Live Oak upset San Benito 28-25 and put a damper on the
Haybalers’ playoff hopes.
Morgan Hill – Friday Kevin Abbott rushed for three touchdowns Friday night to help Live Oak upset San Benito 28-25 and put a damper on the Haybalers’ playoff hopes.
“They just came out and took it to us, period,” said San Benito coach Chris Cameron. “They set the tone from the beginning of the game, and we didn’t respond. They wanted it more than we did.”
Live Oak (4-5, 2-2 TCAL) took the lead right off the bat after Dustin Muhn returned the opening kickoff about 90 yards before everyone had completely settled in, but San Benito (4-5, 2-2 TCAL) answered right back. On the Haybalers’ first possession, quarterback Karson Klauer found Anthony Francis down the left sideline for a 76-yard touchdown.
After the first minute of action, the defenses intensified, and both teams had trouble picking up the first down.
With 2:50 left before halftime, Abbott found a hole in the defense for an 84-yard touchdown that put Live Oak up 14-7. The drive started on the 1-yard line but a penalty gave the Acorns some breathing room.
After that it was all Acorns. Live Oak continually shut down San Benito’s offense, forcing several three-and-outs.
Live Oak took a 21-7 lead with 9:04 left in the third quarter on a 74-yard run by Abbott that was similar to his first one.
San Benito mounted a little of a comeback late in the game by going to the air, but by then it was too late.
“At the end they were giving us a lot of cushion, keeping guys in bounds,” Cameron said. “We needed two scores, so they could give up a little bit.”
San Benito missed two PATs late in the game that forced them to get two scores instead of one. One PAT was blocked, and one was wide right.
The Haybalers got within 21-13 after a one-yard run by Abel Jacquez with 4:23 left in the third.
After recovering a fumble late in the third quarter at the Live Oak 28-yard line, San Benito appeared to be in a position to get some momentum going. But Klauer’s pass was picked deep in the secondary to eliminate the chance.
That turnover set up a 27-yard handoff power run by Muhn as the fourth quarter began.
San Benito put together nine consecutive pass plays to move the ball 77 yards down the field, capped by a six-yard touchdown pass to Jeremy Burns to get within 28-19 with 4:45 left.
The Balers also connected for a four-yard touchdown pass to Art Esparza. But by then there was only 1:17 left in the game. San Benito had use its timeouts on defense to try to get the ball back.
“Our kids did a good job with the two-minute offense,” Cameron said. “That was good to see.”
San Benito will play its final league game against visiting Palma. While Gilroy will be at Live Oak on Thursday in a game that was moved because of the holiday.
Four teams are tied with 2-2 records in league.
