Fielding a football team half the size of Gilroy, Pacific Grove
came out swinging in the first quarter of Friday night’s contest,
scoring two touchdowns to take a 12-0 lead over a stunned and muted
group of Mustangs.
Pacific Grove – Fielding a football team half the size of Gilroy, Pacific Grove came out swinging in the first quarter of Friday night’s contest, scoring two touchdowns to take a 12-0 lead over a stunned and muted group of Mustangs. Turnovers and a serious injury to a team leader caused the calamitous start.
But over the course of the game, the Breakers couldn’t keep up with the sustained manpower GHS threw at the 2006 CCS Small School Division runner-up, falling 32-19 at Howard Cowen Breaker Stadium on Friday.
Gilroy improved to 4-2 after winning the non-conference matchup, while PG dropped to 5-1.
“I think if you check the numbers that were coming in and out on (Gilroy’s) offense and defense, I think that eventually the two-platoon system they had wound up wearing us down,” Breakers coach Buck Roggeman said.
The Mustangs employed a relentless rushing attack that totaled 241 yards on 30 carries. Running back Travis Reyes received a third of the hand-offs, resulting in 163 yards and three touchdowns. It is the second game in a row he has rushed for as many scores.
“Our coaching helped us out a lot, we just kept trying different things,” senior lineman Gerry Rodriguez said. “At the end, they were tired … We could have kept going.”
With 4:25 remaining in the first quarter though, it was Gilroy’s players who looked like they had just lost the game. A somber mood fell over the Mustangs’ sideline when senior Ryan Costa injured his right leg while returning a punt. His foot looked to stick in the sloppy midfield mud while being tackled by several Breakers defenders. As Costa was being taken off the field to go to the hospital, players rallied around GHS coach Rich Hammond before yelling our their teammate’s name as a rallying cry. Thirty-two points later the team had won the game in his name.
“(Ryan’s) a great kid and you don’t want to see anyone get hurt. Especially a kid who is a senior, who is busting his butt to help our team and who on top of it is such a wonderful person,” Hammond said after the game. “And It was extremely emotional too because his dad coaches on our team.”
The defense responded with a fierce start to the second half when linebacker Brandon Elam scooped and scored a high third-down snap that went over quarterback Daniel Connors’ head, giving Gilroy a 26-19 lead. Safety Tony Travis provided an equally opportune play when he intercepted a pass on Gilroy’s 2-yard line before returning the ball 59 yards and washing away the Breakers hope of evening the game.
Turnovers plagued the Mustangs’ offense, keeping the final margin of victory closer than it could have been. Quarterback Jamie Jensen fumbled twice, gave away two first-half interceptions and was held under 200 yards passing for the first time this season. He completed 20 of 30 passes for 179 yards and did manage to throw a touchdown, keeping a five-game streak alive. Jensen hit receiver Dante Fullard on a screen pass for a 46-yard score in the beginning of the second quarter.
After the game, players and coaches met in the end zone, talking about what went right, what went wrong, and how they did right by their fallen teammate.
“We played like they just hurt one of our own family, and just played all out to win that game for him,” Travis said.
“Which we did,” added Elam.
