Remember the old ABC Sports commercial the ?the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat?. Last week for the Kennedale Wildcats (12-1) it was the thrill. Last night it was the other. {{more}}
A week ago, the Wildcats won in dramatic fashion with a goal line stand and a last minute drive. This week parents, fans, coaches and players watched in agony when a 15 play drive in the last three minutes of the game came up short as the final second tick off the clock.
Last night?s game lived up to its bill. The two top teams in Region II, both undefeated and sporting DI running backs, ran up over 1100 yards in offense, scored 100 points and included a comeback win with a key goal line stand and a dramatic last second drive.The Argyle Eagles, #1 in Region II, came from behind to take a 52-48 win over the Kennedale Wildcats, #2 in Region II in a region semifinal state playoff at Hanby Stadium in Mesquite, Texas.“Our kids fought so hard…”
Kennedale Coach Richard Barrett told Darren Lauber of the Star Telegram after the game, ?I don?t know what to say. Our kids fought and played so hard, and I just can?t describe how tremendous their effort was.?
This was a game of offenses. Defenses on both sides struggled to find an answer.
Kennedale had three backs with 100 plus yards with Juwan Washington, a San Diego State commit, who led all backs with 316 yards at 10.34 yards per carry and 3 touchdowns. QB Jake Michener had 154 yards on 10 carries at 12.8 yards per and 1 touchdown. Ronald Hayes had 125 yards at 5.6 yards per carry and 3 touchdowns. Kennedale finished with 603 yards of offense.
Argyle?s running back, Arizona State bound Nick Ralston, had 297 yards at 8 yards per and 4 touchdowns. Argyle finished with 511 yards of offense.
It started out well for Kennedale…
It started out well for Kennedale. By the time the offense had run three plays, it was 13-3 with the Wildcats ahead. Kennedale ended the half with a 10 point lead with the score 27-17. The Wildcats had 380 yards on offense compared to Argyles 219.But late in the second quarter a huge stop by the Eagles came on a Wildcat 4th and 1 on the Argyle one yard line. The Eagles came up with maybe the play of the night, stopping Juwan Washington who average over 10 yards per carry for the game from crossing the goal line.
..the Eagles came out to play in the 2nd half
If the first belonged to the Wildcats, the Eagles came out to play in the 2nd half. Argyle won the battle of the yards 303 yards to 280 yards and they outscored the Wildcats 35-21. But the final outcome was always in doubt even up to the last 6 seconds. The lead changed several times in the latter stages of the game.
Kennedale?s last lead came at the 5 minute mark when senior running back Ronald Hayes punched one over to make the score 48-45. The drive was keyed by senior quarterback Jake Michener who had runs of 18 and 21 yards on that drive and a 65 yard touchdown gallop earlier in Q3.Argyle took the lead at 3:59…
Argyle then took the ball and moved swiftly down the field, keyed by 57 yard run by a Ralston to give Argyle the lead at 3:59 in the game.
Kennedale took possession at the Kennedale 25 and then on a 3rd and 5 converted on a 9 yard run by Hayes for a 1st and 10 on the K49 with 1:40 in the game. On a 4th and 8 at the Kennedale 49 and with 1:20 minutes in the game, Washington completed a halfback pass to Michener for a 12 yard gain to the Argyle 37. Washington then made a 6 yard gain to the Argyle 31 with 49 seconds on the clock.
Runs by Hayes and Washington pushed the ball down to the Argyle 22 after a pass attempt by Michener goes through the hands of a receiver at the goal line.
Twelve seconds remained …
Twelve seconds remained in the game with Kennedale with a 3rd and 6 at the Argyle 22. A second passing play failed and 6 seconds remained.
Kennedale called for one more pass attempt and Michener had to scramble to avoid a determined Argyle pass rush and got off a final pass. The ball fell short and the Cats watched in total frustration as the ball turned over on downs and the clock ticked off the last second.
The Wildcats finished the 2014 season with the school?s first undefeated regular season, a school best overall 12-1 record and championships in district, bi-district and area play.
Hats off to the Senior Wildcats 2014, the overall success of the season was due to their leadership and especially their play.
