Hollister will play for third place on Friday
By Tom Vivian
Special to the Free Lance
Hollister’s Junior Pee Wee Vikings have finally been beaten, one game short of a national championship bid.
Leading 12-0 with only 10 minutes remaining in the national semifinal contest, the Vikings were burned by two big plays engineered by the Watchung Hills (New Jersey) Wolverines, both of which resulted in long touchdowns and a 13-12 come-from-behind victory for the Wolverines.
Watchung Hill’s surprise victory ended Hollister’s national championship dreams after a string of 14 unbeaten games dating back to the beginning of the season, which is believed to be the most ever by a Hollister team.
In the first quarter, it was clear that the defenses would establish control of the game as both teams traded punts several times, with neither team able to move the ball.
Late in the first quarter, New Jersey finally got its offense untracked, moving the ball to the Hollister 4. The Vikings defense stiffened and stopped the Wolverines drive, but a Viking fumble gave them a second opportunity.
Hollister’s defense rose to the occasion again, stopping the Wolverines short of the goal line a second time, swinging the momentum in the Vikings favor.
The Hollister offense responded with a 96-yard drive downfield, scoring on a halfback option pass from Mikey Koroluk to Cody Freitas that covered 31 yards, giving Hollister a 6-0 lead at halftime.
Hollister capitalized on a turnover to score again in the third quarter as Dominic Padilla recovered a Wolverine fumble, and moments later, halfback Koroluk romped 61 yards to paydirt on a reverse play. The Vikings again missed the conversion kick, but were up 12-0.
Based on the way the defense was playing, a 12-point lead seemed to be sufficient. After all, the Hollister defense had only given up four scores all year long.
But Watchung Hills struck quickly as the fourth quarter began, breaking outside and scoring on a long run to narrow the gap to 12-7 with nearly a quarter to play.
The Wolverines surprised Hollister with an onside kick and recovered, scoring again moments later on another 40-yard run. Within two minutes, the Hollister lead had evaporated and it was now 13-12 in favor of their East Coast opponents.
Hollister had a few minutes left, but the Wolverines shut down the holes and stopped the Vikings efforts short of the goal line, holding on for a 13-12 win.
The Vikings will play for third place honors against the Blue Springs (Missouri) Gators on Friday.
