The rain was off and on all night long, cycling between heavy downpours and a calm emptiness. Likewise, the CCS Division I Championship game was particularly temperamental, which was arguably one of the most impressive underdog upsets in CCS championships as sixth-seeded San Benito came away with a wild 35-28 win over top-seeded Milpitas Saturday night at Independence High.
The Haybalers hit the ground running, putting themselves ahead 28-0 in the first half, but Milpitas turned the tides against the unsuspecting and possibly complacent San Benito. When Milpitas scored four consecutive touchdowns to equalize, San Benito quarterback David Stanton knew the pressure was on. Then he hurled a long ball.
Picture the scene: misty winds, illuminated by the floodlights, surrounded the spiraling ball, which fell perfectly into Cody Freitas’ outstretched hands. It was a Kodak moment to be sure.
The 24-yard pass placed the Haybalers into scoring position, and Damien Botelho managed to carry 10 yards for a TD to give San Benito a 35-28 lead. But there was no time for celebration yet because the last two minutes of the game proved to be the longest and the most stressful.
Mostly because of Milpitas heavyweight Vita Vea.
At 6-4 and 280 pounds, he stormed his way through the Haybalers’ defense all night. From the sidelines, players and coaches alike were astounded by the way Vea could move with guys practically hanging on him. Their fears quickly transformed into celebration after John Barrera, a senior linebacker, intercepted a pass to clinch the championship for good. In the end, San Benito went home as champions with a 35-28 win.
“The game was an analogy of the season,” a San Benito assistant coach remarked. “There was a point in time when I asked Coach (Chris) Cameron, ‘Are we as bad as we look?’ Then there was a time when I felt that [we] were a good football team. This game was the essence of that.”
The game could be divided into three parts, really. The first “act” would be San Benito’s relentless reign over Milpitas. Stanton rushed six yards for the first TD of the night, which put Milpitas, the projected champions, on its heels at 7-0. The Haybalers were far outsized by the Trojans, but that didn’t keep running back Damien Botelho from leading the second TD drive for a 14-0 lead. By the time the first quarter ended, strong defense and big plays from San Benito kept the entire game in Milpitas’ half.
Milpitas started to look hopeless as Cody Cameron of San Benito harassed them twice in quick succession. Midway through the second quarter, Cameron intercepted a pass and sprinted down the side of the field. A startled defense began to set itself up, but Cameron made a hard cut left and found a vast opening for an easy 65-yard TD run to make it 21-0. Vea fumbled the ball on the very next play, and Cameron capitalized again, scoring a 24-yard defensive TD. The Haybalers were convinced that the game was theirs, and at 28-0, who would disagree? End scene.
Something clicked from that point on inside of Milpitas. The second portion of the game began immediately after that fourth TD because Milpitas was determined to make it San Benito’s last. Vea was a steam engine, rushing almost every other play and consistently gaining solid yardage. Vea totaled 189 rushing yards that game. It didn’t take a genius to see the pattern, but San Benito just couldn’t stop the giant. Vea scored a 16-yard TD, placing the Trojans behind at 28-7, but that was after knocking his way through thick defense. Milpitas brought out the heavy artillery and San Benito didn’t see it coming.
San Benito carelessly fumbled the ball on a botched handoff, but even after Vea rushed for a 26-yard TD, the Haybalers were relatively smug with the 28-14 score. Vea the tank kept rolling ahead, setting up Milpitas’ running back Squally Canada for a 2-yard TD.
Now, the 28-21 scoreboard was unnerving. San Benito groaned every time Vea had the ball in his hands, and the Vea-centric running plays created an opportunity for Brandon Sualua to equalize the score 28-28 with another 2-yard TD. San Benito’s lead disappeared quickly, and there was seven minutes left to decide the victor. End scene.
The last “act” was a revival in San Benito’s spirit. Before the kickoff, both sides of the arena were cheering as loudly as they could, and the sidelines of San Benito were roaring with positivity. Stanton, Botelho, and Freitas were the key players in the next drive that steadily brought the ball from the San Benito 20-yard line to the Milpitas end zone. Stanton and Botelho alternated between running the ball, and Stanton’s long pass to Freitas was critical. Botelho finally had the last TD to settle the final score 35-28 San Benito.
“It’s a dream come true,” said Stanton on the game-winning drive. “Scoring that final touchdown and taking the knee at the end was my favorite part of the game.”
The ending ceremony handed the CCS trophy to the ecstatic Haybalers, who had come a long ways, figuratively and literally. The Hollister-based team, which started the season 2-4, were on a roll, beating all the teams they needed to beat to come to this game. Their execution and team spirit was evident in this final match, and it was nothing short of impressive.
