SEASIDE – San Benito High quarterback Karson Klauer was on
record that the Baler defense would rise up and have a great game
against Seaside last Friday.
Klauer is one fine soothsayer. The Baler defense, blitzing at
every turn, stifled the previously undefeated Spartans 14-0.
Though the two teams won’t likely see each other again this
season due to varying enrollment, the non-league game had the
atmosphere of a Central Coast Section playoff game. The Balers
(2-1-1) had entered the game as the 15th-ranked team in the CCS,
while the Spartans (3-1) were ranked 8th and No. 1 in the southern
area of the CCS by mbaypreps.com.
SEASIDE – San Benito High quarterback Karson Klauer was on record that the Baler defense would rise up and have a great game against Seaside last Friday.
Klauer is one fine soothsayer. The Baler defense, blitzing at every turn, stifled the previously undefeated Spartans 14-0.
Though the two teams won’t likely see each other again this season due to varying enrollment, the non-league game had the atmosphere of a Central Coast Section playoff game. The Balers (2-1-1) had entered the game as the 15th-ranked team in the CCS, while the Spartans (3-1) were ranked 8th and No. 1 in the southern area of the CCS by mbaypreps.com.
“It was intense,” said Baler fullback Chris Brigantino, who rushed for 40 rough-and-tumble yards on nine carries. “It was intense.”
“It was a team effort,” said Baler head coach Chris Cameron. “It was the first game we played all four quarters for.”
After a scoreless first period, a bad snap by Seaside from its own 35 went way over the head of punter Matthew Avila. Avila did a good job of picking up the ball, running around deep in the backfield, then getting rid of it by passing it. The ball fell incomplete as the Spartans had a few linemen illegally downfield on the play. The Balers declined the penalty and took over on downs.
Brigantino’s tough three-yard run garnered a first down on a fourth-and-two at the Spartans 26. However, a Klauer incompletion on fourth-and-seven stalled the Baler drive with a little over a minute remaining in the first half.
Instead of running out the clock from their own 20-yard line, Spartans quarterback Gabe Cruz-Gonzales dropped back to pass on first down and threw short over the middle. The ball went right into the breadbasket of Baler linebacker Anthony Vasquez, who returned it untouched 26 yards for the first TD of the contest.
“That was stupid of us to try to pass from where we were with a minute left in the half,” said Spartans pony-tailed head coach Alfred Avila. “That was our fault as coaches.”
“I saw one of their guys coming across the middle,” said Vasquez, who had his first career interception. “All of a sudden here came the ball. I had my adrenaline going.”
The presence of the Spartans Keawe Block was an issue for the Balers in the first half. Block, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound burner, gained 71 yards on eight carries in the first half. However, Block didn’t touch the ball in the second half for some reason, possibly an injury.
“The coaches got together and talked about that,” said Baler offensive coordinator Rick Dukes. “Block was gaining big chunks of yardage.”
The Baler offense took the second half kickoff and fumbled the ball, but Chris Uribe alertly recovered for the Balers. After a holding penalty had set the Balers back at their 34-yard line, Nick Bailey ran a counter up the middle and broke out into the open field. Bailey bellied to his right side and appeared like he might score, but he fell down at the Seaside 20 for a 46-yard gain.
“Nick had too much body weight leaning forward,” said Dukes. “We were going to kid him about it, but we scored on the drive.”
Klauer ran an option keeper for 10 yards four plays later and nearly got over the line. He snuck it over on the next play from one yard out at the 7:26 mark of the third period to wrap up the game’s scoring.
Meanwhile, the Baler defense really thwarted the Spartans’ high-powered attack in the second half, holding the Spartans to 48 total yards after the intermission, 177 for the game.
Nosetackle Mike Lango had his best game of the year, making tackles all over the field. Defensive tackle Tony Hernandez sacked Cruz-Gonzales twice early in the game, once with help from Colin Parker. The Balers did a good job of pressuring Cruz-Gonzales (7-18 for 92 yards) all night long.
“The defense had a great game,” said Lango. “If we play like this, there is no reason we can’t win CCS.”
Offensively, the Balers did it on the ground with 229 yards rushing. Bailey led the Balers with 84 yards on 12 attempts. Gabe Gaitan ran the sweep to perfection and had 51 yards on nine carries.
“San Benito played a perfect game,” said Spartans receiver Laurence Walker. “They took it to us. They’re a good team, the best team we’ve played.”
The Balers tangle with Monterey (1-3) this Friday night at 7:30 p.m. at Andy Hardin Field as the non-league portion of the schedule finishes up.
Baler bits: The Spartans had been averaging 38 points per game the first three games, while the Balers had given up just 16 points per game in their first three games. The Baler defense is now averaging 12 points per game…..Klauer was just 2-for-9 for 12 yards, but had no interceptions for the third straight game….The Balers had a potential scoring drive derailed by a holding call early in the second quarter, a call Cameron wasn’t too enamored with….The Spartans responded after Vasquez’ TD interception, driving from their own 41 to the Baler 12. A 29-yard field try with six seconds left in the first half went kaput when the snap sailed over Avila’s head.
JV score: Seaside 27, San Benito 0. The Baler JV’s are 1-3.
