Advosports

The defense stole the ball from San Antonio Brackenridge, and then the Victoria West offense seized the opportunity.

With about a minute left in the first half, the defense held strong through penalties and multiple charges toward the end zone, holding Eagles to a short 27-yard field goal. It was one that their kicker missed wide.

Led by senior quarterback Kyle Motal, the Warriors embarked on a long drive from inside their own 10-yard line, led by a 50-yard pass from Motal to Seth Harrison to get into scoring range.

Motal said Victoria West was running the same plays they had been running. But there was one major difference.

"We started going no huddle," said the senior quarterback. "We just started clicking, we got the other team off balance and they didn't know what to expect, and we took advantage of it."

The result - a touchdown with 20 seconds left in the half on a 7-yard pass from Motal to Harrison - proved to be a game changer for the Warriors, who went on to dominate the third quarter en route to a 39-28 victory.

Warriors coach Leonard McAngus said the defense's stand at the end of the first half was critical to the team's second half surge, when it scored 25 of its 29 points.

"We stopped them and then we were able to get it out and get into decent field position," he said. "Our defense, our guys will hit you and they will run to the ball."

The night didn't start off well for the Warriors offense. Despite mustering a first down on a 15-yard run by sophomore running back Chris Franklin, West's drive ended with a punt. Motal opened the game 1-for-6 passing, and relied heavily on the young running back, who finished with 189 yards on 17 carries with two touchdowns.

The Warriors defense held strong for most of the game, limiting Brackenridge to just seven points in the first three quarters, and holding them off until the game was well out of reach.

"They really set the tone in the first half," McAngus said of the Warriors defense. "We gave up seven points early, and then we just shut them down, and started making plays. We held on until our offense got it going."

The defensive stats were impressive for much of the game. Brackenridge quarterback Anthony Garza, after his team's initial drive, had a two-quarter streak where he did not complete a pass, a total of 13 in all. Gabriel Taylor, the Eagles 6-foot-7 senior receiver, has two catches in the first and was neutralized until the fourth quarter.

Motal said the offense didn't let the early struggles get them down.

"Our offense just started clicking, our defense started to stop them, and we just started our first three and out on the first drive, but we got over that and did every play at 100 percent," he said.

McAngus said his defense was able to hold on until the offense shook off the early rust.

"Our offensive kids did a great job of believing and trusting in each other, and good things happen when you do that," he said.

Motal finished the game 9-21 with two touchdowns and 229 yards passing. He made the most of the opportunities he had, buoyed by a strong offensive line that prevented him from being sacked all night and outstanding play from his receiving corps.

"The offensive line did a great job on the pocket," he said. "They protected us well, our receivers made great catches."

McAngus said Motal was prepared and came ready.

"Kyle threw the ball really well," he said. "We had a few drops, otherwise I think he would have had even more stats. I thought he was very accurate, he was very on, very focused."

Overall, seven players caught passes, led by Seth Harrison, who caught four passes for 130 yards and a touchdown.

Motal said he was just trying to maintain his poise throughout the game.

"I was just trying to be calm, trying to relax and trying to get the offense motivated," he said. "I just tried to motivate them every time and talk to them."

INJURED: The crowd fell silent midway through the first quarter when receiver E.J. Simmons was severely injured on an on-side kick. He was on the ground for several minutes, and was taken off the field on a stretcher.

McAngus said the injury looked serious.

"I won't really know what happened until I look at the film," he said. "I don't know how bad the injury is, hopefully it's not bad but it didn't look good when the doctors were looking at him."

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