Mustangs can’t hold 22-0 halftime lead against Trojans
Gilroy – Turnabout proved to be fair play for Alisal.
One week after a fourth-quarter collapse cost the Trojans a chance to upset mighty Palma, Alisal proved its ability to put a tough loss behind it by rallying to defeat Gilroy 29-22 Friday in a Tri-County Athletic League contest and ruin the Mustangs’ Homecoming.
It was a stunning reversal for Gilroy, which led 22-0 at halftime and had thoroughly whipped the Trojans in every facet of the game to that point. In fact, the Mustangs (3-4 overall, 2-1 in TCAL) led in total yardage, 293-26, and in first downs, 10-1.
“I told the team at halftime that if you give this team an inch, they’ll take two feet,” GHS coach Rich Hammond said. “We had so many opportunities to put this team away and we didn’t do it. It’s the most embarrassing loss I’ve been around. You’ve got to play hard for two halves. As great as the team was in the first half, we just didn’t do it in the second half.”
On the other side of the field, the Trojans (5-2, 2-1) were celebrating a season-saving victory, one accomplished with three fourth-quarter touchdowns. After leading TCAL leader Palma 24-21 after three quarters one week earlier, Alisal lost 41-24.
It appeared the hangover lingered into the first half against Gilroy.
“We came out flat,” Trojans’ running back Jason Taylor said. “We all got on ourselves at halftime and said we had to play with heart, to play with pride. We knew if we didn’t play with heart, we were not going to make the playoffs.”
Alisal was a team with a sense of urgency in the second half, and Taylor was like a player possessed. The 6-0, 190-pound senior gained 186 yards and scored all four touchdowns as well as running for a two-point conversion. The Trojans took the second-half kickoff and marched 73 yards in 11 plays with Taylor scoring on a 20-yard run.
The back breaker for the Mustangs might have come early in the fourth quarter. David Alejo caught a dump pass over the middle and fumbled. The ball bounced right into the hands of Taylor who didn’t have to break stride in scoring on a 32-yard run as Alisal closed within 22-14.
“That was huge,” said Trojans’ coach Sunil Smith. “Sometimes you need a little luck. I was proud of these guys. I choke up with pride every Friday night. There’s just 33 of us. Last week, we played Palma tough and ran out of gas. I preached to them you have to finish games. These guys kept playing.”
Taylor got the game-winner on a 60-yard run with 1:54 left.
Despite a 22-0 halftime lead, Hammond lamented about missed opportunities. Ryan Costa returned the opening kickoff 34 yards and Marc Vegas hooked up with Marshad Johnson with a 36-yard pass play that gave GHS a first down at the Alisal 16. The drive stalled and a 35-yard field goal attempt was wide left.
The Mustangs moved into Trojans territory on their second possession after Costa’s 13-yard punt return, but again couldn’t sustain a drive.
On the next two possessions, Paul Gonzales scored touchdowns on runs of 46 and 49 yards. Two long Danny Contreras runs set up a 20-yard TD pass play from Vegas to Johnson 22 seconds before halftime for the 22-point lead. But it wasn’t enough.
“They’re the type of team that if you give them life they’re going to play harder than any team you’ll ever face,” Hammond said. “We gave them a football game. We may have given away our season in the second half. Now we’ll see what this football team is made of.”
