Sixteen seconds left, tied score and 41 yards to paydirt.
Hollister – Sixteen seconds left, tied score and 41 yards to paydirt.
The San Benito Haybalers (6-1-1, 3-0 TCAL) responded to that challenge by scoring in the game’s final second to defeat the Salinas Cowboys 27–21 in a tense Tri–County Athletic League showdown at Andy Hardin Field.
Coach Mark Ironside’s Cowboys faced a fourth–and–eight on their own 41 with 20 seconds left. Needing a win to climb back into the title race because a tie would do them little good, the Cowboys took a chance with a screen pass that dropped incomplete.
Coach Chris Cameron’s Balers grabbed that opportunity with cool efficiency. Diminutive wide–out Alex Gonzalez was put into the game to give quarterback Karson Klauer a second target.
Gonzalez turned in the game’s key play when he jumped high between two taller defenders and snagged Klauer’s heave before tumbling to the ground two yards from the goal line with eight seconds left.
“I was surprised he threw it at me since I’m so short, and two tall guys were on me,” said Gonzalez. “I just went up there, reached for the stars and brought it down.”
“I was just trying to get rid of the ball,” explained Klauer of the 39–yard pass. “Alex did an excellent job to go up and get that.”
Fullback Chris Brigantino bulled to within 10 inches of the goalline with two seconds left. Cameron called a final timeout and was ready to have Drew Blake try the chip–shot field goal.
When Salinas called a timeout to try to ice Blake, Cameron immediately called for the offense to take the field. Klauer followed a surge by the middle of the offensive line to muscle his way into the end zone. A pause of 10 seconds to pull off the defenders led to the dramatic call of a touchdown by the referee.
The win left the Balers alone atop the six–team league with a 3–0 mark.
The Cowboys shot to a 14–0 lead late in the second quarter, only to see the Balers pull even by the first play of the second half.
“Our kids gave a super effort – they played their hearts out,” Ironside said of his charges.
Nathan Ironside set up the first Cowboy score when he snared a deflected Klauer pass for an interception at the Baler 38 with 1:24 left in the first quarter. Skyer Crawford passed seven yards to Travis Dozier for the touchdown on the first play of the second quarter. Christian Regalado added the PAT kick.
The Cowboys turned another Baler turnover into a second touchdown. Blake’s 34–yard field goal try was blocked, with Bryan Dougherty’s return giving Salinas a first down on the host 16.
Four plays later, Manny Martinez turned an option pitch into a six–yard dash to the right pylon with 2:42 left in the half, making it 14–0.
The Balers regrouped with a nine–play scoring march that took just 1:44. Gabe Gaitan’s 27–yard burst on a delay put the Balers in business in Cowboy territory.
Klauer completed the drive with a roll–out to his right before hooking up with Charles Thompson for 15 yards and six points. Blake’s PAT try missed wide right for a 14–6 intermission count.
“We made a lot of adjustments at halftime, the most we’ve ever made,” Klauer said of the intermission changes in blocking. “You saw what happened on the first play.”
After Gaitan gave the Balers momentum at the Cowboy 43 with a 43–yard kick–off return, Brigantino jetted off right tackle for a 43–yard touchdown on the half’s first snap. Klauer then spotted Gonzalez unmarked at left end and tossed an easy two–point conversion for a 14–14 deadlock.
After the Balers lost one scoring chance when a Blake 31–yard field goal try missed its mark with 5:25 left in the third, the next possession turned into a three–play drive covering 52 yards for a 21–14 lead.
Klauer found Art Esparza open with a sideline pattern on third–and–nine that turned into a 51–yard scoring play when the receiver bounced off two tacklers toward the go–ahead score. Blake converted for the 21–14 edge with 2:04 left in the third quarter.
The Cowboys drew even on the first play of the fourth quarter when Tim Bothke turned an outside veer play into an 80–yard race to six points.
“Karson really grew up as a quarterback, his best game of the season,” said Cameron. “He kept his cool, threw the ball away when he had to, took a sack when he had to. Once we made the adjustments so that we could pass–protect correctly, we knew we’d have guys open because Salinas was sending seven guys at us.”
Thompson paced the Baler rushing with 76 yards in three carries. Brigantino managed 75 yards on a dozen tries. Klauer went 13–for–28 for 291 yards. The Balers finished with a 456–291 edge in total offense.
By Bob Burch Sports Writer
