Gators grind out win at Hillsdale

Sophomore slot receiver Wyatt Staley tied it with a 9-yard scoring sweep with 8:52 remaining in regulation. Then after senior linebacker Jack Barton’s interception put SHP back on the offensive, the Gators took a steady, patient approach on offense, and it paid off.

“All practice we stress discipline,” SHP running back Greg Gamitian said. “We just have to play our game and we’re going to be one step ahead always. That paid off all week.”

Doing nothing flashy, Gamitian carried the ball 17 times, and gained no more than 10 yards on a single run until the game-winning drive until he made a slight adjustment through the A-gap and burst through for a 29-yard pickup across midfield to the Hillsdale 21-yard line.

“On that play, I read it, bounced it inside,” Gamitian said. “And as soon as I broke free, I’m like: ‘OK, I’m holding onto this football.’ I made sure not to fumble and got downfield.”

Four plays later, the senior running back capped a nine-play, 87-yard scoring drive pounding it in for a 10-yard touchdown run with 1:17 to play. The scoring play put Gamitian over 100 yards rushing — 17 carries for 109 yards — and pushed SHP past 300 total yards of offense.

“I think it was notable to be able to pound the ball and run it in the fourth quarter,” SHP head coach Mark Grieb said. “To be able to make that drive with six minutes to go in the game, and Greg taking it right up the middle. It was so appropriate because he’s a warrior. He may not be the tallest guy on the field, but he is so darn tough.”

Hillsdale running back Dante Allendorf enjoyed another big night. The senior workhorse carried 21 times for 143 yards and both Knights touchdowns.

“He’s improved so much,” Hillsdale head coach Mike Parodi said. “Last year he was really good, but we had a lot of dudes carrying the ball. And this year it’s kind of been his opportunity, and he’s taken advantage of it.”

Allendorf had Hillsdale sitting pretty early in the second half.

With the game tied 7-7 at the break, SHP took the second-half kickoff, but gave it away two plays in when Hillsdale senior Bennett Young intercepted a pass from Max Courson and returned it to the Gators’ 25. Allendorf opened with a carry of 7 yards. Then after Casey Strezo’s pass to Tyler Essa picked up a first down at the 5-yard line, Allendorf slammed it in to give the Knights a 14-7 advantage.

Another apparent Hillsdale interception early in the fourth quarter nearly spelled doom for the Gators, as Courson got hit while releasing the ball and had it find the arms of Hillsdale safety Jacob Bonner. The play was nullified, however, when both teams were flagged with offsetting penalties. The penalty against Hillsdale was for roughing the passer, a call that Parodi disagreed with.

“You can’t have roughing the passer if you’re hitting him before the ball was thrown,” Parodi said. “And our kid was hitting him before the ball was thrown. So, I don’t know how you can have that. So, I misunderstood the rule, I guess, cause I didn’t see what they saw.”

Grieb said the call was made for a high hit to the quarterback.

“I thought it was the third roughing the passer ... and the first one that got called,” Grieb said. “So, I don’t know if it did or not. I don’t know if it matters. I’m not complaining about the officials. I think it’s hard to officiate a game. But whenever your quarterback is getting taken out high, I think you always want to protect the player — you know, either team.”

SHP retained possession, and scored the game-tying touchdown seven plays later.

The two teams traded touchdowns turning a physical first half after a sweltering hot day in San Mateo.

The Gators got three short fields on each of their first two possessions. After stopping Hillsdale’s first possession on fourth-and-2 from the Knights’ 35 — on a stop at the line of scrimmage by defensive tackle Aseli Fangupo — SHP’s offense managed just one first-down pickup before a 37-yard field goal attempt sailed wide.

After Hillsdale punted away its second possession, the Gators took over in Hillsdale territory at the 43 and needed just five plays to score on a 4-yard run by junior Andrew Shen. Hillsdale fired back, though, moving 57 yards on seven plays with Allendorf breaking off a 21-yard scoring run to tie it 7-7.

The Gators had a chance to take the lead in the closing seconds of the first half, using another short field to set up 39-yard field goal attempt. Nathan Fox’s kick again had the distance, but again sailed wide.

“It didn’t all go well but it I thought that was nice,” Grieb said. “We’ve talked a lot about trying to be resilient and bounce back when things don’t go well. And it was really nice to see them make that happen tonight.”

Barton was the force that tipped the scale for SHP late in the game.

The senior’s first big play came on defense came after the Gators tied it up. With the Knights on the march, Strezo produced a clutch pass on fourth-and-12 from the Gators’ 24, finding senior Jorge Hernandez for a 13-yard pickup to move the sticks. After to penalties pushed Hillsdale back to the 21, Strezo’s next look to the air saw Barton read it from underneath and timed it for a critical interception with 5:03 to play.

Three plays later, on third-and-4 from deep in their own territory, the Gators got second life when Courson connected with Barton for a 20-yard pickup for a first down.

“Barton is just a super talented kid,” Grieb said. “A big kid who can make plays. He catches the ball really well and just plays with a ton of confidence. So, for him to make those plays tonight, he really led us to victory.”

SHP was 7 for 10 on third-down tries in the game.

The Gators outgained Hillsdale 308-293 in total yards.

“All the kids were tired and exhausted,” Parodi said. “It’s hard. It’s a tough sport. So, when you get to this point, and the weather was hot all day, it’s a lot to deal with. And I thought both teams responded.”