By PETE BANDA
Special to the NEWS
The season continues for the San Benito Greyhounds after a second-half offensive explosion earned them their second Area Championship in the last seven years. With a 38-19 victory over the San Antonio Taft Raiders, San Benito has set up the third round.
In their game with Taft, San Benito danced with who got them there by leaning heavily on their superstar running back, Fabian Garcia. Despite the Raiders taking an early 7-0 lead, and then forcing a turnover on the ensuing kickoff, the ’Hounds were content with letting the offense run through Garcia and were rewarded for it. In their first seven offensive plays of the game, Garcia had already racked up six carries for 131 yards and two touchdowns.
Even with the heroic effort by Garcia, Taft was more than holding their own, as the game was tied at 13, with less than eight minutes left in the first half. Both teams were looking for an opportunity to take over the momentum, but it was San Benito’s defensive captain, Marino Garcia, who came up with one of the biggest plays of the season. Taft’s running back broke through the defense for what looked like a momentum-swinging 80-yard go-ahead score, but Mariano was able to track down the runner before he crossed the goal line and punched the ball out of the back of the end zone.
Despite failing to put up points after the takeaway, San Benito undoubtedly captured the momentum as they went into the halftime break tied at 13.
The San Benito offense exploded in the second half as Aaron Corona hit Rodney Rodriguez for a five-yard touchdown pass to cap off their first drive. On the ensuing kickoff, Taft fumbled the ball to set up the Greyhounds with fantastic field position. The drive ended with a 2-yard field goal from Jonathan Juarez that pushed San Benito’s lead to 22-13.
The fourth quarter is where the Greyhounds really pulled away as Fabian Garcia broke a 61-yard touchdown run one play after San Benito forced Taft into another turnover. Leading 29-13 late in the fourth quarter, San Benito began to let their foot off the gas and allowed Taft to punch in a touchdown.
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