Brazoswood's defense stops Friendswood 28-18

September 14, 2009

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Friendswood running back Andrew Cole (11) tries to elude a Brazoswood defender. The 5A Buccaneers held Cole and the Friendswood offense in check for most of the game in a 28-18 win. (Photo by Bob Brown)

FREEPORT — The saying that a "good defense is sometimes the best offense" came true as the Brazoswood Buccaneers stymied the Friendswood Mustangs potent offense in a 28-18 non-district win at Hopper Stadium in Freeport.

The two teams were supposed to play one another last year, but Hurricane Ike won that contest.

However - this year it would be the Bucs' defensive wall that would be the difference as Friendswood was held to an anemic 181 total yards with only 21 net yards on the ground.

"We wasted 24 minutes of football in the first half," head coach Steve Van Meter said. "Sloppy, uninspired play, mental mistakes, stupid coacing decisions all contributed to a 21-0 deficit at halftime. Not to tak anything away from a fired up Brazoswood team. The Bucs came in ready to play and smacked us in the mount in the first half."

Brazoswood scored on a 22-yard run by Ricky Lunford with 1:53 left in the first quarter for a 6-0 lead after the extra point missed the mark. Lunford added a second touchdown with 5:55 left before halftime. The two-point conversion was good giving the Bucs a 14-0 advantage.

But the Bucs weren't finished as Brad Peters caught a 12-yards scoring pass from Chase Matzke with 28 seconds left before intermission giving Brazoswood a solid 21-0 lead.

"We were a much better team and played with enthusiasm and mental toughness that we have been accustomed to," Van Meter said. "We had out chances to get back in the game and finally cut the lead to three points late in the fourth quarter."

Van Meter saw his troops get on the scoreboard on a 24-yard Zack Hardy field goal with 8:10 left in the third period.

The Mustangs  got two more scores as Sam Giamfortone scored twice on a pair of two-yard runs to close the gap at 21-18 wit 4:04 remaining in the game.

The second score by Giamfortone came on the heels of a Brazoswood fumble that game the Mustangs the ball at the Bucs' 39.

Brazoswood took their final possession of the game and scored on a three-yard run by Lunford with only 1:10 left in the final period to post the 28-18 final score.

Both teams were hit with several penalties as Friendswood was charged with nine miscues for 71 yards while Brazoswood was flagged for 10 penalties for 73 yards.

The real difference in the game was Brazoswood registering 16 tackles behind the line of scrimmage including sacking Friendswood quarterback Peter Maetzold for -minus 47 yards.

The junior signal-caller finished the night hitting 15-of-23 passing for 160 yards. Sophomore running back Jonathan Johnson had six catches for 67 yards and senior Andrew Cole had five catches for 58 yards while leading the ground game with16 carries for 91 yards.

Friendswood (1-1) must get ready to host the Nederland Bulldogs (1-1) on Friday, September 18 at 7:00 p.m. at Henry Winston Stadium for their season home opener.

The Mustangs beat Nederland in double overtime in 2006 at home and then lost to the Bulldogs in double overtime in Nederland in 2007. Nederland beat Waller last week.

NOTE:  Due to the Friendswood High School construction, shuttle service is highly recommended. 

Shuttle Service:

A shuttle service will operate from Westwood/Bales parking lot to Henry Winston Stadium starting at 6:00 pm. The shuttle service will return from Henry Winston Stadium to Westwood/Bales during and after the game.

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