Sports

PALO ALTO — In loss there is gain.

That’s the attitude the San Benito High football team has to take following a 28-7 defeat to Palo Alto on Friday night. The Haybalers (1-1) were never really in this one, falling behind 21-0 at halftime.

It was the second straight game in which they got off to a slow start — they trailed 14-4 at halftime of last week’s 31-14 comeback win over Pioneer — but this time they paid for their shortcomings.

“Those were really haunting,” San Benito coach Chris Cameron said, referring to his team’s three turnovers, two of which Palo Alto (1-0) converted into 14 points. “We definitely didn’t help ourselves, but we played a great football team. Bottom line, they’re just better than us.”

Vikings quarterback Keller Chryst, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound senior who has committed to play at Stanford, was as good as advertised, completing 17-of-24 passes for 212 yards and two touchdowns.

Chryst routinely put the ball where he wanted, throwing sharp and accurate 10 to 15-yard outs to a host of dangerous wide receivers. He also broke and eluded several would-be San Benito tacklers, displaying tremendous athleticism and strength in the process.

“They ran their outs at will, like it was nothing,” Cameron said. “We had no answer.”

The Balers totaled just 63 yards of offense in the first half and 161 for the game. Their lone score came on a Zak Hicks 1-yard touchdown run with 1:23 left in the game. San Benito put together four solid drives in the second half, but was unable to finish on three of them.

After Palo Alto went up 28-0 with 2:51 to go in the third quarter, the Balers went 70 yards on 14 plays before David Stanton threw an interception in the end zone on a fourth-and-7 from the 15-yard line.

Stanton had as many completions — he finished 1 of 12 passing — as interceptions, epitomizing the team’s titanic offensive struggles. Justice Felice (67 yards on 14 carries) and Hicks (58 on 13) paced a San Benito running game that came to life in the second half.

“We’re a small-town team playing a big time team in Palo Alto, and it was a great experience,” Hicks said. “We struggled a bit, but they were the better team obviously.”

Despite the loss, Cameron said there’s a reason why he put teams like Palo Alto and Los Gatos — next week’s opponent — on the schedule.

“It’s a chance to improve and see how other teams are looking to exploit you,” he said. “We’re going to gain a lot from this loss. We’ll get better, that’s for sure.”