Gilroy coming off 29-22 loss after failing to score in the
second half
Gilroy – Momentum is an oft-used, overused term.
And yet there was no denying that momentum played such a huge role in Alisal’s 29-22 win over Gilroy, a victory one longtime Salinas resident said was the Trojans’ biggest in at least 30 years.
Now we will discover what type of team GHS has, whether the momentum from the second half carries over. Will the Mustangs go flat like the Arizona Cardinals, who obviously weren’t ready to play against Oakland after their near miss one week earlier against the Chicago Bears?
It will be easy to mail in the season because unless things break just right and the Mustangs win 2 of their last 3 games, they are not going to the CCS playoffs.
The season is not lost. It is, however, at a crossroads. And with powerful Palma looming Friday, it is a time when players need short memories. Actually, senior Carlos Estrada is going to think back to two years ago when Gilroy suffered an excruciating 7-6 defeat to San Benito and then went to Palma for its Homecoming. The Mustangs beat the Chieftains 29-22 and wound up going to the playoffs.
“Sure, this loss was disappointing,” Estrada said. “But that (7-6 loss to San Benito) was a devastating loss. We know we can beat Palma. They are a beatable team. We did it before, two years ago. We can do it again.”
It will take 48 minutes of error-free football, not like the 24 GHS put in against Alisal. The momentum that was clearly with the Mustangs during the first half disappeared quickly after halftime.
At no time did the Mustangs look better than during the first 24 minutes against Alisal. Their lines dominated play, and Gonzales and Danny Contreras found big holes to run through.
The defense couldn’t have been any better during that first half. The Trojans gained just 26 total yards, made one first down and didn’t catch a pass. Tyler Maslanka and Hunter Collins had sacks, and Gilroy was poised to gain its third straight win and set up what seemed unthinkable just three weeks ago — a TCAL first-place showdown with Palma.
The Trojans took the second-half kickoff 73 yards in 11 plays for its first touchdown. And Alisal had luck on its side as well, as a fumble bounced right into the waiting arms of Jason Taylor who scored easily to complete a 48-yard pass-and-run, fumble-recovery-and-run play for the second TD.
Momentum was clearly on Alisal’s side and it never left.
If there is a time for vocal senior leaders to step forward, this is it. Maybe it takes one, or two, or three of their own to bring it to the attention of the players.
Maybe then momentum wouldn’t play such a big role in such a big game because the Mustangs were able to sustain a 48-minute effort.
Sub-varsity results-The Gilroy junior varsity and freshmen teams each came up with wins over Alisal. For one of the few times this season, the JV Mustangs were extended before getting the win 23-20 when a Trojans’ field goal was missed at the end of the game. Shawn Hale, Dante Fullard and Josh Gonzales scored GHS touchdowns, and Jeff Smith kicked a field goal. The freshmen halted a four-game losing streak by whipping Alisal 33-0 as Brandon Sanchez led the way with two touchdowns.
