SALINAS - For the first time all season, no smiles were seen on the Gilroy High sidelines following a football game.

If someone had cracked a smile, a couple pearly whites might have been missing.

The Mustangs got punched in the mouth by the North Salinas Vikings Friday night, losing 42-12 at Salinas Sports Complex.

Gilroy's undefeated season is no longer possible, nor is an outright Tri-County Athletic League championship. At 8-1 overall and 4-1 in league, Gilroy is in a three-way tie atop the TCAL with Palma and the Vikings.

The trademark offense that the Mustangs have become known for was off-kilter from the start.

Jose Rodriguez picked off a Jamie Jensen pass less than a minute into the game and returned the interception 24 yards for a touchdown, giving North Salinas a 7-0 lead following the extra point.

It was the first of five interceptions by the Vikings' defense, four of which came against Jensen (24-for-45, 213 yards, 1 touchdown).

"I know I played terrible, but we can't point fingers because we had dropped balls, blocking problems," he said. "Offensively, everyone had faults."

Gilroy coach Rich Hammond agreed with that assessment.

"I thought we played good enough on defense to win, but we played atrocious on offense," Hammond said. "We definitely lost it as a group."

Inaccurate passes, 11 drops (five of which would have gone for 30 yards or more), penalties and a crucial fumble made up the laundry list of mistakes. Jensen was pulled from the game three times, and backup Nick Marra didn't have much luck himself, finishing 1-for-4 for 8 yards and an interception.

Gilroy, which trailed 14-6 at halftime, scored only twice - a 3-yard catch by Bryan Sanchez in the first quarter and an 11-yard run by Peter Guenther (92 yards rushing, 50 yards receiving) in the third. Dante Fullard led Gilroy with nine catches for 114 yards.

Down 21-12 with the ball and 5:48 remaining, Gilroy's 9-point deficit turned into a 30-point defeat within the span of two minutes and 15 seconds.

North Salinas' Ira Steele busted the game open on a sack of Jensen, which resulted in a fumble recovery by Jacob Plascencia who scooped and scored from three yards out, making it 28-12 after the PAT.

Things continued to unravel for Gilroy when Sanchez cramped up on the ensuing kick return, fumbling the ball away at the Mustang 22-yard line.

Viking running back Mark Ramos (16 carries, 106 yards) covered the distance on rushes of 17 and five yards to make it 35-12 at the 5:09 mark.

Gilroy's next possession ended in three downs on an interception by Adam Santa Ana, setting up an electric 32-yard touchdown run by Marquis Brooks on the next play.

"Most of the things that happened (defensively) were mental mistakes that could easily be corrected in practice," said GHS defensive end Chris McMurray. But the defense, which forced the Vikings to punt seven times and also recorded one turnover on a Nico Sandoval interception, wasn't what concerned Hammond.

"Here's the issue that we have: We obviously played very poor and we played very poor because we didn't have the life and the enthusiasm and the energy that we've played with at previous points," he said.

The jubilation on the North Salinas sideline was clear for all to see after the game. Players tossed their helmets high in celebration and Vikings coach Steve Zenk called the victory "the biggest" of his career and school history. In contrast, several Mustangs were frustrated to the point of throwing their helmets in disgust.

"Unfortunately, if you lose you want to lose playing your best game, and we didn't do that tonight," Hammond said. "Hopefully, we're going to learn a little bit about character and how to come back with our backs against the wall."

The Mustangs will finish the regular season Friday at home when they host Hollister (3-6) in the 52nd edition of the Prune Bowl.

Note: Continued ownership of the VFW Trophy and a share of the TCAL title will be on the line Friday, but a victory against the Haybalers would also give Gilroy its first winning streak against San Benito since the Mustangs won five straight from 1987-91.

Weekly Awards

Offensive Play of the Game

Peter Guenther's 11-yard touchdown run was possibly his best of the season. Along with showing good vision, Guenther also displayed toughness by carrying several North Salinas defenders the final few yards.

Defensive Play of the Game

Nico Sandoval's interception in the second quarter was an excellent example of how to stay in stride with a receiver while also tracking the ball. The turnover, which occurred with 22 seconds left in the second quarter, kept Gilroy within a score, 14-6, going into halftime.

Hit of the Game

Linebacker Logan Sweeney played a very good game, totaling several tackles for loss. His biggest hit came on a negative 3-yard carry by Bobby Bautista, whose helmet flew off from the impact.

TCAL leaders

Passing

Name, School Com Att Yd Int TD

Jensen, Gilroy 154 250 2432 11 25

Fales, Palma 108 153 1697 3 17

Rocamora, Alvarez 75 145 826 11 6

Vallejo, Hollister 49 123 744 6 5

Mi. Ramos, N. Salinas 38 86 624 12 9

Gregg, Salinas 31 86 500 10 5

Aportela, Alisal 42 100 491 8 3

Marra, Gilroy 43 62 424 3 5

De La Rosa, Alvarez 18 57 232 4 0

Fabing, Hollister 12 23 154 0 2

Decker, Hollister 8 17 73 1 0

Rushing

Name, School Att Yd Avg

Ma. Ramos, N. Salinas 137 1146 8.3

Jelks, Salinas 192 923 4.8

Olivarria, Palma 122 912 7.4

Bautista, N. Salinas 118 661 5.6

Enriquez, Alisal 114 586 5.1

Grant, Alisal 82 515 6.2

Guenther, Gilroy 47 400 8.5

Bernaldez, Hollister 66 284 4.3

Mendez, Alisal 57 262 4.5

Brooks, N. Salinas 31 258 8.3

Padilla, Hollister 61 230 3.7

Jones, Alvarez 33 226 6.8

Rosa, Alvarez 28 221 7.8

Melesio, Alvarez 75 219 2.9

Suarez-Lopez, Alisal 38 206 5.4

Gregg, Salinas 67 178 2.6

Vega, Alvarez 42 178 4.2

Souza, Salinas 25 155 6.2

B. Taylor, Palma 20 154 7.7

Fullard, Gilroy 21 152 7.2

Cathirell, Hollister 29 135 4.6

Rushing touchdown leaders: Olivarria (Palma) 10, Ma. Ramos (N. Salinas) 8, Bautista (N. Salinas) 8, Jelks (Salinas) 7, Enriquez (Alisal) 6, Fullard (Gilroy) 6, Gregg (Salinas) 5, Benabides (N. Salinas) 4, Rosa (Alvarez) 4, Guenther (Gilroy) 4, Grant (Alisal) 4.

Receiving

Name, School Rec Yds Avg

Fullard, Gilroy 62 1062 17.1

Chernetsky, Palma 44 783 17.7

Hale, Gilroy 37 668 18.0

Perez, Alvarez 31 413 13.3

Guenther, Gilroy 30 308 10.2

McFadden, Hollister 29 463 15.9

B. Taylor, Palma 19 381 20.3

Gettys, Gilroy 19 253 13.3

Olivarria, Palma 18 254 14.1

Melesio, Alvarez 16 110 6.8

Crosby, Salinas 15 264 17.6

Grant, Alisal 15 142 9.4

Martinez, Gilroy 14 155 11.0

G. Taylor, Palma 12 126 10.5

Mosley, N. Salinas 11 179 16.2

Sanchez, Gilroy 11 162 14.7

Suarez-Lopez, Alisal 10 127 12.7

Cornell, Hollister 9 218 24.2

Delgado, Gilroy 9 114 12.6

Romero, Alvarez 9 80 8.8

Martinez, N. Salinas 8 221 27.6

Ma. Ramos, N. Salinas 8 118 14.7

Skinner, Alvarez 8 101 12.6

Cathirell, Hollister 7 73 10.4

Ramirez, Alisal 7 67 9.5

Receiving touchdown leaders: Fullard (Gilroy) 13, Chernetsky (Palma) 11, Hale (Gilroy) 6, Perez (Alvarez) 6, Martinez (N. Salinas) 5, Crosby (Salinas) 4.