When it counts — San Benito Greyhound Kian Jones (#1) gains yards against the Hanna Golden Eagles during last week’s district win. (Courtesy photo/Hector Avila)
By ALBERT VILLEGAS
Special to the NEWS
BROWNSVILLE, TX. —The San Benito Greyhounds won their first game of the season and did so in a big way during their District 32-6A opener against the Brownsville Hanna Golden Eagles at Sams Stadium last Friday.
The ‘Hounds went into district play with a 0-6 record, a mirror image of last season. But having played top-notch teams in the state and across the border since August, these pesky ‘Hounds were accustomed to competing and at times keeping up with other talented players.
With no time left and the scoreboard showing 34-13 in the ‘Hounds’ favor, it was obvious who had the most talent at Sams Stadium on this night.
For the second consecutive game, the San Benito duo of quarterback Albert Gonzalez and wide receiver Kian Jones opened the scoring.
With 9:05 left in the second quarter, Gonzalez connected with Jones for a 26-yard pass.
And like last week, the San Benito defense kept pressuring their foes all four quarters and just clamped down on any Eagle offensive drives.
San Benito defensive captain Victor Rodriguez is pleased that what is practiced during the week is translating into game-day performance on Fridays.
“Our offense did great today. They got on the ball, put points on the scoreboard, and did phenomenal,” Rodriguez said. “We’re going to continue what we’ve done here, and that is work hard all the way until the end of the season.”
The ‘Hounds also exploited their opponent’s defense as the scoring barrage continued late into the second half.
The ‘Hounds put the game away in a decisive third quarter where they scored three touchdowns.
Gonzalez once again threw a TD strike to Jones for 40 yards. Gonzalez showed his running abilities once again, but for the first time this season, found the end zone on a 74-yard jaunt.
Before the end of the third and with 2:33 showing on the clock, Jones scored on a six-yard run.
Hanna kept San Benito players honest and coaches concerned by scoring on a 72-yard pass in between, but still trailed by three touchdowns going into the final quarter.
Everything went well for the ‘Hounds’ offense for a change. Facing a third-and-16 deep into Hanna territory, the coaching staff designed a pass play that resulted in another TD, this time to Santiago Cruz from Gonzalez.
Hanna had a TD run to close out the scoring late in the game.
Jones admits that doubts were being pointed at the team because of the outcome of the pre-district games.
“We never doubted ourselves, which was important. We were thinking more about what we could do as the San Benito Greyhounds,” Jones said. “We’re going to continue to work on ourselves to get better on the way to hopefully a district title.”
By virtue of the all-important victory, San Benito is nestled among the top district teams in terms of records.
The ‘Hounds are 1-0 and tied with the Harlingen Cardinals (1-0, 2-5 season). Both Hanna (2-5 overall) and Brownsville Veterans Memorial (6-1 overall) are 0-1, and Los Fresnos has yet to play a district game.
Harlingen defeated the Veterans in both teams’ district opener.
San Benito’s next game is at Bobby Morrow Stadium when it hosts Los Fresnos Friday.
Recent Comments