Although the San Benito Haybalers control a .500 record with
four games remaining on their regular season schedule, the team is
already entering must-win territory. The Balers’ up-and-down,
win-one-lose-one season so far has put added emphasis on the
remaining slate.
HOLLISTER
Although the San Benito Haybalers control a .500 record with four games remaining on their regular season schedule, the team is already entering must-win territory. The Balers’ up-and-down, win-one-lose-one season so far has put added emphasis on the remaining slate.
The fact is, San Benito’s opponent this Friday night, North Salinas, is in a very similar position. The Vikings don’t exactly boast the overall record of a playoff-bound team just yet — North Salinas is 1-5. But with both teams entering Friday night’s contest with matching marks in the Tri-County Athletic League, any postseason intentions will need to be acted upon quickly.
“Yeah, it’s a must-win, and they’re probably the best 1-5 team we’ll ever face,” head coach Chris Cameron said. “They’re a good football team.”
The TCAL hasn’t necessarily shook out in San Benito’s favor. At 1-1, the Balers are locked in a three-way tie with North Salinas and Everett Alvarez for third place, with Palma (3-0) and Salinas (2-1) currently controlling the top two spots, as well as the two automatic qualifiers toward the postseason.
For San Benito, which still must face a much-improved Everett Alvarez squad, a winless rival in Gilroy and the TCAL favorite in Palma after Friday night, the road won’t get much easier, but could very well be aided with a victory over the visiting Vikings on Friday, the Homecoming game for the Balers.
Kickoff is 7:30 p.m.
“Palma is head-and-shoulders above everybody right now, and the rest of us are playing for second place, with Salinas being front-runner,” Cameron said. “But it’s a big game for us, and I want to be in the same position playing Palma at the end of the season.”
A win against the Vikings could certainly go a long way in ensuring that San Benito’s regular-season finale against the Chieftains actually means something. Moreover, a win against the Vikings would help the Balers snap from a three-game lull that has included losses to Palo Alto and Salinas, as well as an unimpressive 21-14 victory against Alisal on Oct. 1.
Cameron said the downturn in play has coincided with several injuries, including three of the team’s five offensive linemen, and last week’s bye didn’t do much in the recovery department.
“I was hoping we’d be back to full strength, but we’re not,” Cameron said. The team also lost several players to academics recently.
“We’ve stepped back a little bit,” the head coach added. “Part of it is because of injuries and part of it is we’re not playing real well.
“We’re not as crisp as I’d like to see. We’ll see what happens this weekend, though.”
The Vikings are sure to be running the ball come Friday night and will be anchored by back Marcos Mendoza, whose 549 yards rushing on 101 carries is third best in the TCAL.
Quarterback Curt Ceralde, meanwhile, was North High’s lone returning offensive starter this season, and head coach Steve Zenk said at the beginning of the year the Vikings would be throwing the ball more — or at least more so than what the Vikings have normally done in years past.
Ceralde is currently 42 of 98 for 480 yards with three touchdowns and seven interceptions — third best in the TCAL. His favorite target, Angel Estrada, has caught 13 balls for 150 yards, which is second best in the league.
“They’re throwing the ball a little bit more, but they’re still a run-oriented football team,” said Cameron, who was quick to add North High’s strength on special teams. “They’re gonna try and pound us into oblivion at the line of scrimmage, and they’re gonna run a handful of plays repetitively.”
And similar to San Benito, the 1-1 Vikings will be making sure that their regular-season finale against Salinas actually means something as well.
In other words, the playoff push begins on Friday night, aside from what records may say.
“They have a chance to get into the playoffs and they need to get on a roll,” Cameron said. “But it’s a huge game for us, too.”
TCAL Leaders
Passing
Name, School Com Att Yd Int TD
Fortino, Gilroy 66 126 712 4 4
Barron, Alisal 46 104 611 11 8
Ceralde, N. Salinas 42 98 480 7 3
Turner, Alvarez 23 64 469 4 6
Morrison, Palma 34 56 384 2 4
Decker, Hollister 20 43 238 2 2
Leighton, Salinas 23 51 215 5 3
Reyes, Alvarez 5 16 86 1 2
Rushing
Name, School Att Yd Avg
Baird, Palma 141 725 5.1
Estassi, Salinas 138 693 5.0
Mendoza, N. Salinas 101 549 5.4
Melano, Alvarez 50 542 10.8
Hendricks, Hollister 76 486 6.3
J. Morales, Alisal 70 472 6.7
Cerda, Salinas 76 323 4.2
A. Reyes, Alvarez 33 271 8.2
Vegas, Gilroy 35 270 7.7
Sanchez, Hollister 32 219 6.8
Morrison, Palma 45 217 4.8
Garcia, Alvarez 33 210 6.3
Camel, Alvarez 34 191 5.6
Coleman, Salinas 53 182 3.4
Pearson, Alisal 39 167 4.2
Zarate, N. Salinas 48 167 3.4
J. Travis, Gilroy 10 151 15.1
Rodriguez, Alvarez 21 140 6.6
Gutierrez, Palma 24 125 5.2
Almario, Salinas 14 122 8.7
Salazar, Gilroy 36 118 3.2
Sheppard, Alvarez 9 117 13.0
Myers, Palma 17 106 6.2
Rushing touchdown leaders: Baird (Palma) 7, Estassi (Salinas) 7, Mendoza (N. Salinas) 5, Melano (Alvarez) 5, Camel (Alvarez) 4.
Receiving
Name, School Rec Yds Avg
J. Travis, Gilroy 19 279 14.6
Estrada, N. Salinas 13 150 11.5
Estrada, Alvarez 12 199 16.5
Alba, Gilroy 11 114 10.3
Flook, Hollister 10 140 14.0
Harrington, Gilroy 10 119 11.9
Sheppard, Alvarez 9 251 27.8
Ontiveros, Salinas 8 74 9.2
Coleman, Salinas 8 34 4.0
Newton, Gilroy 7 98 14.0
Sherman, Palma 7 91 13.0
C. Reyes, Alvarez 6 93 15.5
Tomas, Alisal 6 86 14.3
Rosales, Alisal 6 54 9.0
Neff, Palma 6 50 8.3
Sanchez, N. Salinas 5 77 15.4
Gonzales, N. Salinas 5 60 12.0
Valdez, Alisal 5 60 12.0
Gardiner, Palma 5 55 11.0
Receiving touchdown leaders: Sheppard (Alvarez) 4, Estrada (Alvarez) 4, J. Travis (Gilroy) 3.
