Defense ruled the day as the Gilroy Browns squared off against the Hollister Vikings in a Junior Midget semifinal Pop Warner playoff game.
Both defenses were successful in shutting down each other’s powerful offenses, which had scored at will in most contests throughout the season. Both forced five turnovers, more than either of these teams had lost in a game all year.
But there was one big difference: Hollister’s defense also found ways to put points on the board, paving the way for the Vikings’ 28-0 victory and a berth in the Peninsula championship game.
Hollister’s defense scored two of the team’s touchdowns, and set up two others by giving the Viking offense a short field to work with.
Gilroy forced the first big break of the game on the opening kickoff as Marcel Brinson pounced on the ball deep in Hollister territory when it fell between two returners. But the Vikings defense took the ball back on the first play from scrimmage as Jonathan Huaracha recovered a wayward lateral and returned it to the Gilroy 36.
The Browns forced a fumble moments later, which was recovered by Kristopher Dipko for Gilroy, but the shift in field position would prove critical.
The Vikings stopped Gilroy in its tracks on successive tackles by Isaiah Quintana, Tyler Pina and Justin Raine. On third down, Browns quarterback Brandon Villar went to the air, finding Thomas Harrington open in the flat. But Viking cornerback Julius Travis pushed Harrington out of bounds before he could head upfield to get the ball back for Hollister.
Taking the ball in Gilroy territory, two 12-yard runs by Nathan Castro and quarterback Tyler Decker gave the Vikings a first down on the Gilroy 15, and Castro swept in on the next play to score the game’s first points. Pina added a two-point kick to make it 8-0 Hollister.
When Gilroy got the ball back, it found the Viking defense unyielding as Stevan Rodriguez and Pina made tackles behind the line to force the Browns three and out. But Gilroy’s defense matched Hollister’s efforts as Patrick Mank and Michael Pirnik forced losses to get the ball back for the Browns.
With the running lanes completely shut down, Gilroy tried to strike through the air, which had worked successfully in an early-season meeting between these two teams. But the Vikings rush forced a wayward pass, which was intercepted by Pina and returned 37 yards for a Hollister touchdown, and a 14-0 lead.
The defenses picked up where they left off in second half as both teams found that they could neither pass nor run. Stevens, Raine and Adrian Soto had big sacks for the Vikings, and Harrington, Brinson, Nicholas Olivares and Christian Salazar did the same for the Browns.
Finally the Vikings defense broke the deadlock by stripping the ball from a Browns runner, which was picked up by Quintana and run back 27 yards for a Hollister TD.
The Vikings got an insurance touchdown late in the contest when Pina ran in from the 20-yard line after the Vikings had taken possession deep in Browns territory.
It was a disappointing loss for the Browns, however Coach Manuel Muro and his team can take pride in a successful season that included four straight wins and a first-round playoff victory against a tough Cambrian Valley team.
Coach Larry Murphy and the Hollister Vikings now have their sights set on a league championship, which they can earn next Sunday at 4pm at Woodside High School in Redwood City against the Sunnyvale Microrockets.
If the Vikings prevail, they will earn the right to represent the region in the Pacific Northwest Regional playoffs.
