The Vikings were swept for the first time in two years. All
three Hollister teams that played came up on the short end of the
score on a muddy, rainy day in Palo Alto.
Palo Alto – The Vikings were swept for the first time in two years. All three Hollister teams that played came up on the short end of the score on a muddy, rainy day in Palo Alto.
Junior Pee Wee
Palo Alto Knights 16, Hollister Vikings 14
The Jr. Pee Wee Vikings came closest to victory on this damp morning as they battled from start to finish with the Knights.
The team’s offense and defense were fairly evenly matched. Both teams were able to move the ball.
Palo Alto tried to use its strong running attack, but solid defense and tackling by Chris Greenwood, Mark Neal, Austin Blake and Adolfo Davila made the run game ineffective, so they went to the air.
Their first pass was picked off by Dustin Rovella to stop the drive.
On the Knights’ next series, the Viking defense held with key tackles delivered by Tyler Pina, Gregory Vasquez, Ryan Disalvo, Kenny Salcedo and Neal.
On the first play after taking the punt from the Knights at the 25-yard line, the offensive line opened a huge hole in the middle. Neal ran 75 yards down the left side for the score to put Hollister up 6-0.
Hollister’s defense continued to dominate early as Cole Benitez, Nate Garza and Zachary Hicks and Blake turned in run-stopping taces.
When the Knights finally did get things going, a huge hit by Nathan Castro caused a fumble that was recovered by Davila, his third recovery of the year, for the Vikings.
But the Viking’s turned ball right back over.
Midway through the second quarter, the Knights forced Hollister three-and-out, and took the punt return back for a 44-yard score to give Palo Alto an 8-6 lead with the conversion.
But the Vikings struck back quickly as the coaching staff saw a weakness in the Knights secondary. Blake went for a deep pass from quarterback Vasquez, who connected for 55 yards and the score.
This time, Dukes was able to kick the wet ball through the uprights for a two-point conversion, putting Hollister on top 14-8.
With time running out in the half, the Knights drove the ball to the Vikings 8, but Rovella made his second interception of the day in the end zone stopping the Knights drive cold.
The Vikings got a jump-start to begin the second half as Blake took the kick off 42 yards with key blocks from Neal and Marcus Sabatte. But the drive stalled
Finally, with less than five minutes remaining, the Knights got a break and drove the ball down to the 6-yard line. From there they ran to the left side to tie the game. Palo Alto made good on the conversion to go up 16-14.
The Vikings still had time for a last-minute score. Good runs by Neal and Mikey Soto gave Hollister a first down in Knights territory.
However, with the clock ticking down, the Vikings were forced to go the air to conserve time. Hollister found it difficult to complete a pass with the slippery ball and muddy field, and Palo Alto held on for a hard-fought victory.
Jr. Midget
Palo Alto Knights 21, Hollister Vikings 0
The Palo Alto Knights rolled to a victory behind a solid offense that moved the ball well all day long.
In the first quarter, Palo Alto scored on their its possession with a 65-yard run, and the one-point conversion was successful.
Defensively, DB Brandon Pina intercepted a Palo Alto pass, and the Vikings were in business on their own 40-yard line.
The first quarter ended on a high note for the Vikings, when Kyle Rhodas sacked the Palo Alto quarterback with help from Josh Villegas and Chris Gonzales.
In the second quarter, Palo Alto again scored on a long run to make the score 13-0, but the Knights’ two-point conversion kick was no good. With 1:55 left in the first half, the Vikings came up with another defensive gem.
Linebacker Mitchell Cook ripped the football right out of the hands of a Palo Alto running back, and the offense took over on the Knights’ 35-yard line.
The Vikings were not able to get into the end zone, and the first half ended with the score 13-0 Palo Alto.
In the third quarter, Armando Lerma took a page out of Mitchell Cook’s defensive playbook by snatching the football right out of a Palo Alto running back’s hands and running all the way to the Knights’ 20 yard line.
That would be the farthest that the Vikings would penetrate, because the Knight defense intercepted a Hollister pass at the 15-yard line to stop the drive.
The Knights then scored on a 25-yard run, and a successful 2-point conversion made the score 21-0 Palo Alto at the end of the third quarter.
Justin Reynolds recovered a Palo Alto fumble with 6:54 left in the game, and then Ryan Shorey intercepted a pass with 1:41 remaining.
Midget
San Francisco PAL 30, Hollister Vikings 0
The Midget Vikings played a non-league game against San Francisco on Sunday, and a familiar pattern repeated itself from the previous week.
The Vikings moved the ball well on offense but couldn’t seem to find the end zone.
San Francisco stopped several long Viking drives to register a shutout.
Both teams also had trouble holding onto the ball on a field that was muddy after four other games had already been played on it.
Mighty Mites
The Viking Mighty Mites continued to give Hollister fans something to cheer about as they played outstanding football for the eighth consecutive week.
Hollister continued to move the ball well. Eddie Munoz reached the end zone on a 70-yard reverse play, and Tyler Fhurong also ran 20-yards to paydirt.
Austin Nye excelled on both sides of the ball, with several good runs, and two big sacks, one of which forced a fumble that was recovered by Trevor Tresch.
Mitch Darnell also contributed a sack on defense, and Nick Volore had his longest run of the year, a 25-yard effort.
Pee Wee
The Hollister Pee Wee team had a bye week.
Cheer
Despite the defeat in Palo Alto Sunday, the Hollister Vikings were not without a triumph. A few miles away at Shoreline amphitheater, the Hollister Junior Midget cheerleaders were victorious in the Peninsula Invitational Cheer Tournament over two formidable opponents, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale.
In a very emotional moment, veteran cheerleader Devin Brooks, who is sidelined for this year with an arm injury, accepted the trophy for her team as head coach Sherry Reynolds listened in by phone.
Reynolds was forced to miss the tournament due to a family emergency.
Four other Hollister cheer teams also performed at Shoreline and did well, although only one other Viking team was competing
All Hollister teams will be at home this weekend for the final week of the regular season. Games will be played on Sunday, Oct. 24 due to a scheduling conflict with the field. Games begin at 10am at Andy Hardin Stadium.
Special to the Free Lance
