Shadow Creek needed every ounce of stoppage its defense had to offer to starve off an upset bid by pesky Cedar Park in a hard earned 21-14 triumph in the Class 5A Division-1 Area Football playoffs Friday night at Merrill Green Stadium.
The victory advances Brad Butler’s squad into the regional semifinals on Dec. 1 against Georgetown back at the Bryan ISD facility at 1 p.m. Georgetown outlasted New Caney in a 35-32 shootout on Friday for its second round win.
“We knew it was going to be a really tough test for us,” said Butler, whose team continues its remarkable inaugural season run, improving to a perfect 12- 0. “We knew defensively that they like to bring a lot of pressure and that we would need to hang in there and try to make some plays.”
Despite jumping to a quick 14-0 lead, the Sharks were ultimately indeed forced to overcome stellar defensive play on the Timberwolves’ part, along with a staggering 15 penalties for 113 yards. Cedar Park battled back to even things with a pair of second-half touchdowns and were on the verge of answering an SC touchdown in the closing minutes. However, the Sharks’ defense finally locked up the victory by coaxing four straight Ryder Hernandez incompletions from the Shadow Creek 31-yard line.
“I really got to tip my hat to their defense, but I thought we really also played tough,” Butler said. “I really thought our defense hung in there and made some plays.
“We don’t want to have to operate that way (with the penalties), but most of the year when we have had our backs to the wall, we have been able to respond.”
The Timberwolves also experienced their share of problems with the yellow hankies during the evening, as a defensive holding call by Cedar Park kept Shadow Creek’s opening drive alive.
Jamarian George (15 of 28 for 192 yards, 2 touchdowns) and company immediately made Park pay for the miscue with the senior signal caller drilling Greg Hancock with a perfect strike inside the Timberwolves’ 30-yard line. Hancock (who was all alone on the play) motored the remaining distance to cap an impressive 56-yard catch-and-run journey to the goal line.
Greg Ezechukwu booted the extra point through the uprights for a 7-0 Shadow Creek lead with 10:32 remaining in the opening period.
The Sharks then cashed in on a Park turnover, as junior linebacker Courtney Brown picked off a Hernandez fling at his own 45 and returned it 25 yards to the Timberwolves’ 30-yard line. George’s 16-yard pass to C.J. Guidry helped SC overcome a false start penalty and Marquez Huland (99 yards on 30 carries, 1 TD) capped off the scoring drive with a 13-yard scamper four plays later with 6:37 still left in the first.
Ezechukwu’s PAT made it 14-0.
However, the contest suddenly turned into a defensive struggle on both sides. The Sharks were unable to take advantage of good field position for the rest of the first half. George was also stopped for no gain on an attempted quarterback sneak on fourth-and-one from the Timberwolves’ 40-yard line midway in the second quarter.
The SC defense also held Park in check with the Timberwolves managing only three first downs during the initial 24 minutes.
While the Sharks managed to dodge both the flags and the teams trading turnovers early in the third quarter, Park’s persistence eventually paved the way to Carl Abseck’s squad getting back into the thick of things, though.
Hernandez rambled 17 yards on a QB keeper to cut the margin in half with 5:40 remaining in the third, while the sophomore signal caller hooked up with Josh Cameron on a 37- yard TD to tie the issue at 14-14 with 6:21 left in the fourth.
Lining up offsides almost proved costly for the Sharks, as well, on the ensuing kickoff with yet another flag negating an apparent 70-yard scoring return by Kealon Jackson. Shadow Creek shook off the near miss, though, by promptly marching 54 yards in just three plays. Guidry grabbed a 31- yard fling from George in the end zone’s left corner with 5:26 left to put the Sharks in front for good at 21-14.
The Timberwolves drove from their own seven to the SC 31 in the closing minutes, but the Sharks’ defense stepped up to force the four straight incompletions from Hernandez. George then ran out the remaining time on the clock with three straight kneel downs.
“We would love not to have to come out here so many times and respond,” said Butler about his defense. “But I’m proud of them. They just continue to fight.
“I haven’t seen Georgetown yet, but we have got to clean s... Click here to read full article
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