The Menlo-Atherton Vikings invaded town Saturday and walked away
with three wins as Hollister’s teams struggled offensively.
The Menlo-Atherton Vikings invaded town Saturday and walked away with three wins as Hollister’s teams struggled offensively.
Here is a rundown of all this weekend’s action:
Junior Midget
Menlo-Atherton Vikings 14, Hollister Vikings 6
By Tom Vivian
In a game dominated by defenses a blocked punt by Menlo-Atherton ended up being the difference.
Hollister’s defense asserted itself early as Josh Nehme intercepted a pass to stop Menlo-Atherton’s first drive, and Jackson Starke and Jonathan Mendoza made many tackles on subsequent series. Menlo had a hard time getting anywhere near the end zone as Evyn Moreno booted a 55 yard punt to pin them back deep.
Menlo-Atherton finally broke a long run early in the second quarter to get on the board first. Hollister responded with a long drive of their own.
After getting the ball near midfield, Kyle Cameron ripped off big chunks of yardage. Starke followed with a long gain that brought the Vikings down to the 1-yard line.
Menlo held for three straight plays, but on fourth down Nehme found Darin Hopkins in the end zone to make it an 8-6 game.
Hollister threatened to score again just before halftime as Tanner Okerson pulled in a pass from Nehme for a 25-yard gain, but Menlo’s defense stiffened to keep Hollister out of the end zone. That was the closest Hollister would come to scoring again.
Menlo-Atherton’s big break occurred early in the third quarter after they blocked a punt on the Hollister 5-yard line. The visiting Vikings scored two plays later to go up 14-6.
Hollister’s offense could not move the ball, but the defense kept the game close as Evan Weatherly recovered two fumbles to stop Menlo-Atherton drives.
Late in the game, Hollister’s defense gave the offense one more chance as Nick Trimble made a big hit behind the line of scrimmage and Starke made two tackles to stop Menlo-Atherton with 1:10 remaining – giving the offense a short field. But Menlo’s defense held and did not allow Hollister to advance toward the goal line, preserving their 14-6 win.
Pee Wee
Hollister Vikings 14, Menlo-Atherton Vikings 14
By Samantha Zaragoza
The Vikings Pee Wee team, 1-1 in league play, took the field hoping to improve their record. But quickly, the Menlo-Atherton Vikings asserted themselves and scored on a pass to take a 6-0 lead only minutes into the contest.
Hollister was unable to move the ball on its following possession and Menlo was given the chance to move the chains again. Michael Esparza wrapped up a Menlo runner at the line of scrimmage and both Andres Soto and Hunter Racquet brought runners down for loss of yards in consecutive plays, forcing a Menlo punt.
A quick Hollister series later, Menlo had the ball back. The Hollister defense took advantage. Tristan Wahl recorded two tackles at the line and Michael Zaragoza added another tackle for a loss to force a punt.
But Menlo-Atherton retained possession after a muffed punt. Hollister’s defense shined again, though, with gang tackles and outstanding individual plays by Ishmael Medina and Dimarco DelCurto.
Menlo tried to throw but Hollister’s Diego Fisher intercepted the short pass right over the receiver’s head and ran the ball up to the Hollister 48-yard line. With Soto running hard and Nate Newman creating big gaps for runs by quarterback Racquet and Marcus Guevara to move Hollister down the field. The drive would end with a beautiful spiraling throw from Racquet to Fisher in the end zone with only 27 seconds left in the half. Soto’s point after kick was good and Hollister took an 8-6 lead heading into the locker room.
Hollister, starting with the ball in the second half, moved down the field thanks to quarterback Brad Sparrer and Medina, who connected on a pass to bring the Vikings to the 45-yard line. On the next play great blocks by Peter Felice and DeAlba opened up a hole for Soto, who ran 40 yards to the end zone. The point after was blocked, but Hollister held a 14-6 lead.
Menlo started their next series with good field position. After a few plays, Menlo-Atherton moved the ball to the Hollister 2-yard line. A quarterback keeper tied the game at 14-14.
Both teams struggled offensively in the fourth quarter. With two minutes left in the game, a Hollister blocked punt gave the Vikings one more shot to win the game, but Menlo intercepted the ball to end the game tied at 14.
“Soto and Medina ran hard today,” said head coach Gino Andrade, who mentioned Newman’s blocking. “We need pass coverage and (offensive line) help. But we are getting better every week.”
Junior Pee Wee
Menlo-Atherton Vikings 22, Hollister Vikings 13
By Tom Vivian
Menlo-Atherton scored twice on long runs in the first period to take a quick 14-0 lead, as the visiting Vikings ran away with a 22-14 win.
Hollister’s offense was stymied early in the contest, but the Viking defense kept the game close as Jonny Gonzalez and Blaze McShane both recovered fumbles.
Late in the game, though, the Hollister offense finally got on track as Gonzalez and Ernesto Sanchez, led by the blocking of Angel Amescua, Chris Pritchett, Matthew Hernandez, Isaias Rivera, Diego Ramirez, Blaze McShane and Kobe Valdeztook, took turns running the ball up the middle for good gains.
Sanchez finally snuck over from the 1-yard line to give Hollister its first points.
Hollister scored again late in the game on an 8-yard sweep by Aiden Lyon, who also ran in the point after, but it wasn’t enough to complete the comeback.
Mighty Mite
Menlo-Atherton Vikings 24, Hollister Vikings 6
By Noelle Greene
Hollister’s offense continued to struggle, forcing the defense to be on the field for most of Saturday’s game.
Hollister’s defense continued to improve, and started strong Saturday with great tackles in the first quarter by Ivan Mendoza, Anthony Sanchez, Andrew Montoya and Gabriel Dominguez. But Menlo-Atherton scored late in the first quarter to take the lead.
The offense got Hollister’s offense started in the second quarter with a reverse. Joshua Zapien and Sanchez followed with great gains, but Hollister lost the ball with 6:28 left in the quarter.
Hollister’s defense continued to hold Menlo back thanks to Sanches, Bobby Viramontes and Zak Fisher. But Menlo-Atherton added to its lead with a touchdown with only two minutes remaining in the half. The Vikings would strike again moments later after forcing a quick four-play series from Hollister.
Nate Greene recovered his second onside kick of the game to start the second half – giving Hollister good field position. But the Vikings couldn’t advance the ball, despite a pass to Sky Freer.
With fresh legs, Menlo moved the ball past Hollister’s defense despite great players by Joseph Frank, Rudy Morales, and Viramontes. Menlo-Atherton scored its final touchdown late in the third quarter.
Menlo began another drive in the fourth quarter, but a great tackle by Freer, Victor Cabrera, and other Hollister players gave Hollister the ball on its own 15-yard line. Montoya handed the ball to Zapien, who carried it for a first down. After a pass by Montoya to Freer, Mendoza ran 55 yards to score Hollister’s lone touchdown.
When Hollister regained the ball, Montoya and Zapien combined for a big gain. Greene replaced Montoya at quarterback and completed two passes to Freer but Menlo-Atherton stopped the drive.
Tiny Mites
Hollister Vikings vs. Menlo-Atherton Vikings
No score
By Tom Vivian
Coach Trenton Finister had the Hollister offense firing on all cylinders as the Vikings ran all over their opponents Saturday.
Justin Cortez had a 50-yard touchdown run, and Donnie Gutierrez followed up with a 33-yard run to paydirt as the Vikings dominated.
Finister replaced his offense in the second half, and got the same results with new players. Junior Cortez reached the end zone on a drive where he carried the ball several times for good gains. Keith Peliaz followed with several good runs to score again on a drive that also featured a completed pass from Justin Cortez to Peliaz.
Ladanian Gaytan got his turn to play running back late in the game as he ripped off big chunks of yardage behind the blocking of Gregory Mendoza, Mitchell Sanchez, Junior Cortez, Jason Suniga, Isaac Barragan, Nathaniel Mendoza and Gaven Homen.
Menlo-Atherton had a much more difficult time moving the ball as the Hollister defense made big plays from start to finish. Andrew Pasillas and Devin Homen each made several big tackles in the first half. In the second half, Julien Garcia stopped a breakaway run with an open field tackle, and made several big backfield tackles to force losses. Damien Castro also made a big backfield tackle late in the game.
Next week
The Vikings go on the road Sunday. Most of the teams will play at Campbell, but the Junior Pee Wees will travel to San Lorenzo Valley.
