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Photo by VYPE Media's Bradley Collier.
Defense Shines Late As Weiss Earns 1st Playoff Win
Nov 16, 2019
On Friday, The Pfield in Pflugerville hosted a UIL 5A Division II bi-district football matchup that included two Austin area teams that didn't make the 2018 postseason. Pflugerville Weiss (9-2) bounced back from an 0-10 inaugural season record to earn a share of the 13-5A Division II title in 2019. It played a motivated Lockhart (6-5) squad that earned this year's 14-5A Division II three-seed after falling two wins short of the postseason in 2018.
The teams got off to a slow start on Friday, as evident by Pflugerville Weiss' turnover on downs at the 7:28 mark of the opening quarter and Lockhart's fumble at the 6:01 mark of the period, but the Wolves bounced back for a come-from-behind 24-14 win.
"It's a pretty emotional moment," Pflugerville Weiss coach Tommy Aultman said of his program's first playoff win. "I'm just so proud of these kids for buying in from the first day that we started in January of 2017. We told them all along if you just stick to the process, stick with us, stay coachable, be a good kid, do what we ask you to do [and] work hard that you're going to have a chance to do something special with this first senior class."
Lockhart took the game's first lead on Jayden Garza's touchdown at the 1:13 mark of the first quarter, but Pflugerville Weiss started to heat up in the second period. Its defense was attentive enough to force and recover a fumble on the same play its offense recorded an interception, and its offense later tied the score when Jeremiah Robinson hung on for a touchdown catch with 49 seconds left in the first half.
The momentum stayed on Pflugerville Weiss' side in the third quarter. The Wolves were successful on a field goal attempt that gave them a 10-7 lead with 8:20 left in the period. Their defense also forced its second fumble recovery at the 4:13 mark and VYPE Player of the Game Edric Whitley's first pick six made it a 17-7 game with 10 seconds left in the period.
Tay Andrews cut into the deficit with a touchdown at the seven-minute mark of the fourth quarter, and Lockhart's defense forced its second turnover on downs with 2:39 left in the game, but Whitley's second pick six at the 2:03 mark wrapped up Pflugerville Weiss' win.
"Our defense is the heart of this team," said Whitley. "So we dominated today, and here are the results."
Pflugerville Weiss now turns its attention to its next postseason test. The Wolves will travel to Corpus Christi ISD's Cabaniss Sports Complex for next Friday's UIL 5A Division II area round playoff game against 16-5A Division II's Sharyland Pioneer (10-1). Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
For more sports coverage, follow Thomas (@Texan8thGen) and VYPE (@VYPEATX) on Twitter.
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Photo by VYPE Media's Bradley Collier.
Cedar Ridge Uses Late Surge To Stay In Playoff Race
Nov 02, 2019
UIL 13-6A has been one of the state's most unpredictable football districts in 2019, so Friday's Week 10 matchup between Round Rock Cedar Ridge (5-4, 4-3) and McNeil (3-6, 2-5) recorded an important result for the playoff race. The home Raiders ultimately inched closer to a postseason berth with a 38-21 win at Round Rock ISD's Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex. It was their third victory in the last four games.
VYPE Player of the Game DJ Rountree kicked off his three-touchdown performance when he caught a 62-yard touchdown pass from Jalen Brown at the 8:59 mark of the opening quarter.
"We try to come in here and play our best," said Rountree. "We knew what we had to do, so come out here and execute."
The Raiders were off to a good start, but didn't start pulling away until the second quarter. Its 10-point period featured a Gavin Baudek 27-yard field goal and another Brown-to-Rountree touchdown connection that resulted in a 17-0 halftime advantage.
Cedar Ridge's lead was expanded to a 24-point edge when Deuce Vaughn scored a 63-yard rushing touchdown at the 3:30 mark of the third quarter, but McNeil answered with a Blake Henke 34-yard touchdown run with 23 seconds left in the period to make it a 24-7 game.
The start of the fourth quarter was more of the same, as Cedar Ridge expanded its lead to 31 with Jack Turner's 28-yard touchdown pass to Rountree and Brown's five-yard touchdown run.
McNeil also found late game success, but didn't have enough time to erase the entire deficit and keep its playoff chances alive. The noise that the Mavericks made came from Henke's 63-yard touchdown run, Mekhai Coleman's second fumble recovery of the game, and Henke's 22-yard touchdown pass to Sakiusa Tikoikosov in the fourth quarter.
A week remains in the 2019 Texas high school football regular season, but most of the 13-6A playoff race hasn't been decided. That's because Cedar Park Vista Ridge (7-2, 5-2) and Round Rock Stony Point (7-2, 5-2) are tied for second in the current district standings, and Round Rock (6-3, 4-3) and Round Rock Cedar Ridge (5-4, 4-3) are holding a one game lead over Round Rock Westwood (4-5, 3-4) in the race for the district's final playoff spot. The only thing that's certain is Austin Vandegrift's (9-0, 7-0) 13-6A title.
The 13-6A playoff teams and positions will be finalized by Vista Ridge at Round Rock on Thursday November 7th, and both Cedar Ridge at Westwood and Stony Point at Vandegrift on Friday November 8th, so keep an eye on the Week 11 matchups. The eventual representatives will play 14-6A teams in the bi-district round of the playoffs.
"Not take 'em lightly," Brown said of Westwood in the upcoming regular season finale. "They're a good team over there. Stay sharp on offense and stay lockdown on defense, and get a big win next week too."
For more sports coverage, follow Thomas (@Texan8thGen) and VYPE (@VYPEATX) on Twitter.
Looking to get more involved? Check out ShopVYPE for fresh gear that supports local schools and the VYPE U Ambassador Program. To sign up for the VYPE U Program, apply at VYPEU.com.