Converting two turnovers into two fourth-quarter scores in less
than a minute, visiting Independence delivered a body blow to San
Benito’s come-from-behind chances on Friday night at Andy Hardin
Stadium, and eventually escaped Hollister with a 22-14 victory that
left many on the San Benito sidelines left wondering what just
happened.
HOLLISTER
Playing from behind isn’t anything new for the San Benito Haybalers. After all, they played with a late deficit the last two games of the regular season, only to mount a fourth-quarter comeback against both Gilroy and Palma.
But Friday night’s fourth-quarter deficit against visiting Independence, in the opening round of the Central Coast Section Division I Championships, may have staggered the Balers with its quick-strike suddenness.
The team’s one-point lead turned into a 12-point deficit in just 35 seconds.
“It was a little deflating,” San Benito head coach Chris Cameron said.
Converting two turnovers into two fourth-quarter scores in less than a minute, the 76ers delivered a body blow to San Benito’s come-from-behind chances on Friday night at Andy Hardin Stadium, and eventually escaped Hollister with a 22-14 victory that was so quick and sudden, it left many on the San Benito sidelines wondering what just happened.
“I can’t even begin to tell you how that taste feels in my mouth right now,” senior fullback Cody Hendricks said. “We came out and played a good game, but small mistakes.”
Small mistakes have a tendency to be a bit more glaring in the postseason, however.
“I just can’t believe it’s over already,” senior defensive back Conner Stevens said. “We tried our hardest. It was a good season, I thought.”
Nobody on the San Benito (6-5) sidelines was ready to stop playing football this season, but the Balers were instead forced to watch an Independence (9-2) team — one that was eliminated by San Benito just a year ago — celebrate at midfield after properly avenging last year’s loss.
“It’s pretty hard, especially just to lose at home,” senior quarterback Tyler Decker said. “I definitely didn’t want to go out like this my senior year.”
For three-and-a-half quarters, it appeared the San Benito seniors — and the rest of the team, for that matter — would extend their season at least one more game.
But despite controlling a 7-6 lead into the fourth quarter, the Balers got into a field-position battle with Independence in the final stanza, starting each drive from inside their own 20.
In other words, it was the last place you’d want to turn the ball over.
“And they took advantage of our turnovers,” Cameron said.
With 85 yards in front of them, the Balers fumbled the hand-off on the very first play from scrimmage midway through the fourth quarter. Independence linebacker Lieo Ulu recovered at the Baler 16, and small but speedy halfback Robert Rodriguez ran up the middle out of the shotgun formation two plays later for a 21-yard touchdown at the 7:31 mark.
The 5-foot-9, 180-pound back led Independence with 167 yards on 20 carries.
“He was quick,” Stevens said of Rodriguez, who also sprinted 78 yards on the first play of the second half, eventually setting up a 14-yard touchdown by Steven Tellez that cut into San Benito’s lead, 7-6.
“He squeezed through those big, tall lineman and just made his way through,” Stevens added of Rodriguez.
After Rodriguez’s go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter, though, San Benito’s Shadoe Valenzuela was stripped of the football on the ensuing kickoff — the loose football making its way right into the arms of Sixers defensive back Phillip Eagles at the Baler 19. On the very next play, Independence quarterback Tony Ulu ran a keeper — a play that would normally be utilized in goal-line situations — straight up the middle, and didn’t stop until he hit paydirt.
The 5-foot-10 signal-caller disappeared into the center of the pile, which then continued to move 19 yards upfield until it crossed the goal line, giving the Sixers a 19-7 lead with 7:15 remaining.
Two turnovers. Two touchdowns. Thirty-five seconds.
“That wasn’t too good,” said Hendricks, who also lined up at linebacker on Friday night. “That was the big turning point.
“One play they pick it, and then the next play they score. That kind of stuff will knock any team down.”
At least on Friday night, it was enough to keep the Balers down. Although it was only a week ago when San Benito trailed Palma 17-6 at halftime, only to comeback and take a 21-17 lead with 3:29 remaining.
The week before that, in Gilroy, the Balers erased an early 14-0 lead, and even trailed the Mustangs 32-27 late in the fourth quarter before leapfrogging their rivals in blue with a last-minute punt block en route to a 34-32 win.
But on Friday night, the Sixers prevented the Balers from any final-quarter heroics, and prevented last year’s story from happening again, when Independence squandered a 9-7 halftime lead and lost to San Benito, 13-9.
“Hats off to them. They played their butts off and they deserved that,” Cameron said of the Sixers, who forced four second-half turnovers, three in the final period. “They played their hearts out.”
The Balers didn’t go away quietly, though. After Independence turned the game upside down in just 35 seconds, San Benito earned its best field position of the fourth quarter—at its own 48—when Matt Vallejo returned the ensuing kickoff 30 yards to midfield. The Balers then ate up big yards—a 14-yard rush by James Flook, a 19-yard pass from Tyler Decker to James Sanchez—before Hendricks bounced off the left end for a 17-yard touchdown.
The senior fullback finished with 118 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries, with his second score placing the Balers in a 19-14 game with 5:32 to go.
“We know we can come back on people,” said Hendricks, whose 1-yard touchdown in the first quarter supplied the Balers with a 7-0 lead at halftime, and was nearly the difference in the game before the wild fourth-quarter finish.
“This kind of hit us pretty hard,” he later added. “I don’t think that we’ve had that happen to us all season.”
After Independence went three-and-out on its next possession, handing the ball back to the Balers with 4:53 left, Decker threw an interception to linebacker Mario Rosas, who returned the pick to the Baler 38.
Seven plays later, after San Benito used up all of its timeouts, placekicker Tony Lopez boomed a 38-yard field goal between the uprights to give the Sixers a 22-14 lead with 2:07 remaining.
“It was a slide play to the fullback,” said Decker, who sat out last week’s game against Palma and was sporting a right knee brace on Friday night. “The defender just kind of hung on it.”
The Balers needed a touchdown and a two-point conversion in the final minutes, just in order to tie the Sixers. It got down to the Independence 28-yard line before turning the ball over on downs, though.
“That was the key to our second half—defense and special teams,” Independence head coach Norm Brown said.
Cameron said he could see the game developing in the first half, as the Sixers marched deep into San Benito territory on two different occasions—the latter of which saw Independence quarterback Ulu fumble the ball on third-and-goal at the San Benito 7, only to be recovered by Hendricks.
“You could kind of seeing it coming together for them,” Cameron said. “They owned that second quarter.”
In the end, all Independence needed was a break, and it received several in the second half.
“We just went down and had two fourth downs turned away in the red zone, and we should be winning the half,” Brown said. “But if we win the second half, we win the game.
“We told the kids, ‘No fear.'”
Independence now advances to the Division I semifinal round, where it will play the winner between No. 7 Homestead (6-4) and No. 2 Santa Teresa (7-3) next Friday or Saturday at San Jose City College.
TEAM 1 2 3 4 F
INDP 0 0 6 16 22
SANB 7 0 0 7 14
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
RUSH (1:36) — SANB, Cody Hendricks, 1-yard touchdown, PAT (Tino Granados) is good; 7-0, SANB.
Third Quarter
RUSH (10:12) — INDP, Steven Tellez, 14-yard touchdown, two-point conversion (Lieo Ulu) is no good; 7-6, SANB.
Fourth Quarter
RUSH (7:31) — INDP, Robert Rodriguez, 21-yard touchdown, PAT (Tony Lopez) is good; 13-7, INDP.
RUSH (7:15) — INDP, Tony Ulu, 19-yard touchdown, PAT (Tony Lopez) is no good; 19-7, INDP.
RUSH (5:32) — SANB, Cody Hendricks, 17-yard touchdown, PAT (Tino Granados) is good; 19-14, INDP.
KICK (2:07) — INDP, Tony Lopez, 38-yard field goal is good; 22-14, INDP.
INDEPENDENCE STATISTICS
Passing: Tony Ulu — 9 of 15, 74 yards, 1 interception. Rushing: Tony Ulu — 11 attempts, 34 yards, 1 touchdown; Robert Rodriguez — 20 attempts, 167 yards, 1 touchdown; Steven Tellez — 1 attempt, 8 yards; Mario Rosas — 2 attempts, 0 yards. Receiving: Steven Tellez — 6 receptions, 57 yards; Tony Lopez — 2 receptions, 10 yards; Jimmy Nguyen — 1 reception, 7 yards.
SAN BENITO STATISTICS
Passing: Tyler Decker — 3 of 7, 32 yards, 1 interception. Rushing: Tyler Decker — 13 attempts, 48 yards; James Flook — 6 attempts, 31 yards; James Sanchez — 4 attempts, 15 yards; Cody Hendricks — 22 attempts, 118 yards, 2 touchdowns. Receiving: James Flook — 1 reception, 8 yards; James Sanchez — 2 receptions, 24 yards.
TOTAL OFFENSE
Independence — 321 yards (247 rush, 74 pass)
San Benito — 244 yards (212 rush, 32 pass)
TURNOVERS
Independence — 2
San Benito — 4
SACKS
Independence — 2 (Michael Cintron, Aaron Scott) for -15 yards
San Benito — 0
PENALTIES
Independence — 9 for -78 yards
San Benito — 1 for -5 yards.
