’Hounds drop season opener

By HOMAR HERNANDEZ
Special to the NEWS

Too close
A Greyhound lands a touchdown during last Friday’s game against the Hanna Eagles. (Photo by TJ Tijerina)

Suiting up in the purple and gold uniform is the dream of any San Benito student-athlete, and this past Friday was the very beginning of the 6A Region IV District 32 season. With limited seating, the San Benito Greyhounds took on the Hanna Eagles at Bobby Marrow.

In a game where the defense proved to be the difference-maker, the Greyhounds were defeated 13-20 in their season opener. Both teams had excellent defensive stops and a couple of turnovers that shifted the game.

San Benito opened up the game by receiving the ball and running it back to their 30-yard line. It only took the ‘Hounds one drive to get onto the scoreboard. After a ten-play drive and a touchdown was called back, senior quarterback Elijah Hernandez found wide receiver Jermaine Corbin for a touchdown. The Greyhounds decided to go for a two-point play that was stopped by the Hanna Eagles. The Greyhounds were up 6-0 early in the game.

The score remained 6-0 with five minutes left in the first quarter. The Hanna Eagles stopped the Greyhounds on their second drive, forcing the ‘Hounds to punt; a high snap sent the ball behind the punter, which led the Hanna Eagles to recover the ball on San Benito’s own five-yard line. The Eagle’s Ryan Trinidad caught the ball in the endzone and was followed by the extra point to make the score 7-6 in favor of Hannah. The first quarter ended with both teams creating good defensive stops and ending the first quarter in Hanna’s favor.

Early in the second quarter, the Greyhounds had the ball on the 50. Quarterback Elijah Hernandez was looking to make a play down the middle of the field and was intercepted by Hanna’s defense. However, shortly after, the Greyhounds forced a fumble allowing them to get the ball right back. Hernandez then made an excellent throw to senior Christian Alvarado for a gain of 30 yards and would put the Greyhounds at the 20-yard line. A couple of runs got the greyhounds to the 5-yard line. At the five-yard line, Hernandez handed the ball off to Castilleja for a 5-yard touchdown. With the extra point being good, the Greyhounds took the lead 13-7 with 6 minutes remaining in the second quarter.

Both defenses did their jobs stopping the offense and even forcing some turnovers, but none turned into points. Opening the fourth quarter, Hanna’s quarterback found wide receiver Ethan Pena for a touchdown. The game was now tied 13-13. The Eagles wanted to take the lead and decided to go for 2 points. The Eagle’s threw the ball, picked off by Robert Trevino but taken down at the 50, leaving the game tied 13-13 at the start of the fourth quarter.

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