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Amassing more than 500 yards of offense and pitching a shutout on defense, the Hollister High School football team traveled to Alvarez High School on Sept. 4 and emerged with an impressive 52-0 victory to claim its second win of the season.
Baler head coach Thomas Sullivan credited the win to all 67 players on the roster, particularly the scout teams that spent the week preparing for Alvarez.
“I really have to give a lot of credit to all our players, but in particular our scout teams,” Sullivan said. “Those guys spent a lot of time preparing for what we were going to see from Alvarez and (made) sure to give us great looks all week long.”
The game was moved up to 6 p.m. after the junior varsity matchup was canceled, disrupting Hollister’s usual game-day travel plans and player routines.
“With Labor Day traffic and everything else, leaving the school at about 4:20 presented quite a lot of issues for us in terms of being able to get taped, warmed up and get into a routine, but our guys responded very well,” Sullivan said. “The leadership took it upon themselves to keep the younger guys in line and the expectations were clear for them.”
Despite the disrupted schedule, Sullivan said the Balers responded quickly, intercepting the Eagles on their first possession and turning the takeaway into an early score.
“We were on about the 28-, 29-yard-line going in and we were able to capitalize with the score right off the bat, so that was great transitional football, where the defense makes a big play, hands it over to the offense and good field position and we’re able to capitalize on that,” he said.
Sullivan noted the Balers’ offense scored on every drive of the game, including one field goal.
Junior running back Braiden Hernandez was among the offensive players Sullivan highlighted.
“Braiden Hernandez ran the ball extremely well,” Sullivan said. “He had a big night behind our offensive line and tight end; they did an incredible job blocking all night.”
The Balers finished with 506 yards of total offense, including 390 rushing yards and 116 passing yards, according to the team’s records. Hollister was 3-for-5 on third-down conversions and 1-for-1 on fourth down.
“Eli Lovejoy had another big night, not only through the air, but he also scored on the ground and he had two or three big runs as well,” Sullivan said. “He did great with his leadership and commanding the offense.”
Junior kicker Henry Hernandez made all seven of his extra-point attempts and a 35-yard field goal.
On defense, Sullivan said the Balers are currently playing at a “high caliber.”
“Defensively, just a ton of playmakers,” Sullivan said. “We had Elias Nelmida step up again, big on the outside. Jacob Torres came in relief and he had some big tackles as well as a pick.”
Nelmida, a junior outside linebacker, recorded five tackles, while Torres, a junior linebacker, had four tackles and an interception. Layton Smith, a junior defensive end and outside linebacker, recorded five tackles, two tackles for loss and one sack.
Senior strong safety Benjamin Candelaria and junior free safety Nathan Candelaria have also helped lead the defense. The latter recorded his second interception of the season against Alvarez.
“The Candelaria brothers do so much behind the scenes,” Sullivan said. “They make it very hard for offenses to be able to throw down the middle of the field. Their communication with the other defensive backs and our undercoverage is tremendous.”
Sullivan said the Candelaria brothers coordinate the defense before plays begin to help prevent blown coverages.
With the shutout behind them, Sullivan and his coaching staff are focused on taking “each game one at a time.”
“We are 100% focused on getting better every week and, like one of my coaches always likes to say, ‘the windshield is bigger than the rear view mirror,’” Sullivan said. “We don’t look behind, we keep looking forward.”
The Balers will return to Andy Hardin Stadium on Sept. 11 to take on the Wilcox High School Chargers.
BenitoLink thanks our underwriter, Hollister Rotary, for helping expand the sports coverage around San Benito County. Rotary is a nonprofit organization that conducts humanitarian projects, encourages high ethical standards, and works toward world understanding. All editorial decisions are made by BenitoLink.
The BenitoLink Internship Program is a paid, skill-building program that prepares local youth for a professional career. This program is supported by Monterey Peninsula Foundation AT&T Golf Tour and Taylor Farms.
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