JV Football Falls to the Pflugerville Panthers 33-7
November 4, 2017
A offensive player hold onto the ball as a defensive player tries to take him down.
Ryan Bassett ’19 holds onto the ball and keeps running as a defensive player comes to tackle him.
Ryan Bassett ’19 dodges defensive players attempt to tackle him.
Miller Bursk ’20 blocks an offensive player.
Justin Gavina ’18 puts on his helmet before heading onto the field.
The teams get into position for the next play.
Miller Bursk ’20 looks to evade a Pflugerville defender.
Joseph Kubelka ’20 sprints upfield to get a first down.
Ryan Bassett ’19 slips out of the grips of a Pflugerville defender.
Preston Neidhart ’20 breaks through the Pflugerville defense.
Ryan Basset ’20 runs with the ball.
Connor Cooper ’20 runs with the ball.
A Warrior player trips a Pflugerville player.
Players line up for the game to begin.
On the evening of Thursday, Nov. 2, JV football faced off against the Pflugerville Panthers at the Warrior Bowl. Unfortunately, after a hard-fought battle, the Warriors were taken down by their opponent with a final score of 33-7.
“Our physicality is one of our strongest points,” quarterback Connor Cooper ‘20 said. “But it’s just our jobs and our assignments that we need to work on in the future. We need to want to win and feel like this is our house; we have to accomplish what the coaches want us to do.”
Starting off with the ball in the first quarter, the Warriors saw a powerful start, with Tre Guerra ‘20 quickly driving forward on multiple plays. With 8:17 on the clock, however, the ball was turned over to the Panthers, and the Warriors’ defense was given time to shine — and shine it did. Not only was solid defensive work displayed as a whole, but players like Johnangel Luna ‘19 and Ben Jensen ‘19 executed effortful tackles in attempt to stop the Panthers’ drive. Eventually, after more solid plays from Corbin Martin ‘18 and Mateo Gonzalez ‘19, the Panthers scored their first touchdown with 2:21 on the clock.
“Effort, tackling, and our mentality all need to be worked on,” Sahith Thumma ‘19 commented. “When we came into this game I don’t think we were ready. We need to do our jobs.”
In the second quarter, Justin Gavina ‘18 displayed his tackling prowess after halting multiple Panthers drives. Regrettably, even with a few perfect catches from Joseph Kubelka ‘20 and a saving tackle from Sam Bolger ‘18, the Panthers scored twice in the second quarter, ending with a score of 20-0.
With the Panthers beginning with the ball in the third quarter, the Warriors’ defensive line held strong. Malachi Woodard ‘20, Luna, and Thumma all stood out as solid bastions for the Warriors, but the Panthers did end up scoring once more with 7:15 on the clock (27-0).
Finally, in the fourth and final quarter, the Warriors — after another close touchdown by the Panthers — scored with two minutes left in the game. Following a relentless push to the third and then one yard line, quarterback Cooper broke through the Panthers’ D-line and stepped into the end-zone, an extra point kick successful just a moment later.
“I felt like we could have played a lot better, and I feel like we just let them roll right over us,” Cooper said.
Knowing what needs to be improved in the future, the Warriors will battle against the Cedar Ridge Raiders on Thursday, Nov. 9 at Cedar Ridge High School.
