Two games into the league season and the Balers have seen almost everything.
Hollister opened Gabilan Division play at Alisal and rolled on offense with a spectacular passing attack. Yet they trailed in the final minute. With the game on the line and the pressure immense, quarterback Cruz Raquet led a miracle drive to a touchdown with just two seconds left, and the Balers won 44-40.
A week later, on Sept. 26 at home against North Salinas, the attack was all on the ground instead and the game was a defensive struggle, not a high-scoring shootout. But this time, the opponent turned the tables late in the game, as the Vikings rallied for a 13-10 decision.
The Pacific Coast Athletic League, Gabilan Division standings show powerhouse Soquel on top at 3-0 and Palma at 2-0. North Salinas is at 2-1, with the Balers and Salinas at 1-1. After that, comes a trio of Alisal, Carmel and Monterey at 1-2, with Aptos in the rear at 0-3.
“We have to get back to work for Salinas,” said running back Cole Seymour, after the North Salinas game. “We have to get better.”
On Sept. 19 against the Trojans, the aerial game was on fire. Raquet completed 14-of-16 passes for 359 yards and five touchdowns. Jacob Jackson pulled in nine balls for 247 yards and three scores. Jordan Quezada caught four passes for 109 yards and two touchdowns.
Yet Jayden Duarte produced five touchdowns for the Trojans, with a kickoff return, a 69-yard touchdown pass reception and three rushing scores. With just over a minute left, his 4-yard scoring run gave Alisal a 40-37 lead.
Raquet quickly led the Balers down field, starting from the HHS 42-yard line. On the winning play, Raquet and Quezada combined for one of the most exciting moments in Baler history.
“The last play for the win was a two-man route (Jackson and Quezada),” Hollister coach Thomas Sullivan said. “Coverage was bracketed for Quezada but Raquet made a great throw and Quezada made a great catch at the 1.5-yard line where, with great will and determination, he continued to drive his feet until he landed in the end zone for the touchdown and ultimately the win.”
The clock showed 0:02. Amazingly, there was more drama and thrills to come.
Hollister kicked off deep. Nathan Perea received it and ran toward the Alisal sideline, then lateralled the ball back to Duarte. The Trojan star charged toward the other side of the field and had blockers with him. But Baler kicker Junis Mendoza made perhaps the play of the season with a midfield tackle of Duarte to save a touchdown.
“As far as Coach (Chris) Cameron and Coach (Tod) Thatcher can remember, this was the most yards and touchdowns thrown in known Baler history,” coach Sullivan said. “The Offensive coaching staff led by OC Troy Emrey and assisted by Chris Cameron (OL), Mel Rivera (OL), Daniel Osorio (RB), Tony Libit (WR) and Mark Walter (Offensive Assistant) all played major roles in the preparation and execution of the game plan. Cruz Raquet, Jacob Jackson, and Jordy Quezada all had career nights.
“The offensive line (tackles Noe Gonzalez and Russell Ainas, guards Gabe Moreno and Nick Martinez, and center Peter Griego III) all played their best game of the year.”
In the North Salinas game, Hollister led 7-0 at half and 10-0 in the third quarter. The defense was stifling the Vikings. But penalties and three missed field goals would haunt the Balers. North Salinas broke through on a fortunate deflection on a fourth-down pass to score a touchdown and a later 80-yard run put them ahead 13-10 and they held on.
“It was a battle all night,” Seymour said. “We lost our footing at the end and didn’t finish.”
The scoring started in the first quarter when the Baler defense forced a Vikings fumble to get possession on the 19-yard line. One play later, on the 10, Seymour followed great blocking by the right side of the line to get to the edge. He appeared to be bottled up, but broke two tackles to get free and race to paydirt, dragging a Vikings player with him.
The Balers drove into the red zone in the second quarter but the drive stalled and they could not add on to the lead, as a 41-yard field goal by Mendoza was wide left.
A 40-yard run by Hernandez early in the third period had the Balers rolling. They reached a first-and-goal on the Vikings 6-yard line but settled for a 21-yard field goal and a 10-0 lead.
North Salinas got on the board late in the quarter. Facing fourth-and-five on the Hollister 21, quarterback Kai Ceralde’s deep pass bounced off a defender and into the arms of Xander Gonzalez for a touchdown.
On the subsequent drive, Hernandez followed the blocking of Moreno and Griego on a 32-yard run. The Balers kept moving down to the North Salinas 11-yard line but again, red zone troubles closed the door. On fourth down, Mendoza tried a 33-yard field goal but it missed.
The Vikings took possession. The first play was an 80-yard touchdown burst by Dylan Reynoso. The extra point was blocked but NSHS led 13-10.
Quezada exploded on the kickoff return, taking the ball all the way down to the Vikings 49-yard line. The Balers reached the 24 but stalled and a 43-yard field goal missed. The Vikings took over and ran out the clock.
Coach Sullivan said the Balers emphasized the run game to take advantage of the Vikings’ defense, which looked to take away the pass. Hernandez sparkled with 10 carries for 127 yards and Seymour rushed for 66 yards on 14 carries.
Sullivan complimented Tripp Felice’s fierce play from the linebacker position. Felice had 10 tackles against Alisal and 11 against North Salinas. Ben Candelaria had 14 against the Trojans and Ayden Lewis had 10 versus the Vikings.
Sullivan noted the excellent coverage by the defensive backs and safeties against North Salinas. Ceralde entered the game with 22-for-32 passing for 385 yards in four games but was just 7-for-16 for 64 yards.
“I thought we played a great first half,” Sullivan said. “We pretty much controlled the game until the end. The runs were open and Braiden had some great runs. They got us on a counter for the long run. Our expectations are still very high. We have to clean up some mistakes.”
