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Football: West Rocks the competition: Wolves, Hawks advance to 7-on-7 state tourney
By Kieran Steckley, Special to Star Local News
FRISCO -- The finish to the Redhawk 7-on-7 State Qualifying Tournament at Liberty last Saturday served as a suspenseful, exciting and unconventional way to determine a winner.
The finish came via a game of rock, paper, scissors.
After 16 teams competed for four hours, Plano West won the tournament, beating Hebron in a best-of-3 rock, paper, scissors series.
"Players were cramping and after playing several games, we didn't want to risk anyone getting hurt," said Brian Brazil, Hebron head coach.
At the conclusion of the semis, with both teams feeling the effects of being in the 90-degree heat for several hours, a mutual decision was made to forgo the championship game with both teams advancing to College Station.
"The kids had been out there for a while," said Kelly Mercer, West offensive coordinator. "Us and Hebron were lucky enough to make it through without any injuries and who gets first or second place does not really matter.
"It was an exciting rock, paper, scissors match though. The kids had fun with it."
Brazil was pleased with how his team fared, especially with everyone contributing.
"Sure you want to win, you want to go out and compete," he said, "but it's more about how [the team] meshes together as a group."
What the finale lacked in exciting football, the two semifinals more than made up for.
The semifinals were comprised of the four teams that were best out of their pool. Pool A was represented by Wylie, who won a tie breaker with Lovejoy for the right to advance. West, Hebron, and Frisco Centennial each swept their pools (3-0).
Both semifinals were played simultaneously on the northern field of Liberty's campus. On the West side, the Wolves and Pirates traded touchdowns, with West establishing a 27-20 halftime lead. In the second half, the Wolves stepped it up and gradually pulled away from Wylie, 40-27.
Early on, the Hebron-Centennial game looked to be a blow out in the Hawks' favor.
Hebron jumped out to a 14-0 lead, but Centennial fought back, tying the game at 20 just before the first half ended.
The second half was just as close with a rare occurrence altering the game.
After a Centennial touchdown, which played a part in the Titans establishing a double-digit lead, Hebron intercepted the extra point try and returned it for two points. Hebron's defense amped it up from there, forcing a turnover on downs. The Hawks drove down the field while milking the clock, scoring with just under a minute to go to take a five-point lead. Centennial had two plays to respond, but couldn't as Hebron picked up the 43-38 win and a trip to state.
"I'm pleased with the way we are communicating and getting along," Brazil said. "They get after each other, but there is not a bunch of selfishness with them. I've been real pleased with the way they have carried themselves."
Road to the Semifinals
Pool play consisted of four divisions with four teams, each team playing three games.
Pool A saw tight competition between Frisco Liberty, Wylie, Lovejoy, and Sulphur Springs. Liberty edged Wylie, 39-32, while Lovejoy and Sulphur Springs engaged in the lengthiest contest of the day with the Leopards eventually winning in six overtimes, 60-58. In the second series of games, Lovejoy defeated Liberty, 27-13, and Wylie exploded on Sulphur Springs, 50-28. Sulphur Springs got in the win column during the final set of pool play games by defeating Liberty, 32-0. Wylie clinched a trip to the semis by beating Lovejoy, 28-19.
Lake Dallas, Prosper, Frisco Wakeland and West made up Pool B.
West swept through the competition by beating Wakeland, 27-20; Lake Dallas, 41-18; and Prosper, 33-18.
"Really glad with how we played," Mercer said. "We started out slow against Wakeland, but were able to get it together and win some games. And we came out on top."
Wakeland's 2-1 record was good for second in the pool with respective 28-18 and 41-25 victories over Prosper and Lake Dallas.
Hebron ran the table in Pool C, handling Frisco Heritage, 34-6, and beating Richardson Pearce, 41-27. Heritage lost to Denton Guyer, 34-20, and came up short against Pearce, 28-27. Hebron's third game set up a showdown with Guyer. Both teams were undefeated and a trip to the semifinals was on the line. The Hawks made a statement by blowing out Guyer, 39-13.
Pool D had its share of blowouts and close finishes.
Centennial squeaked by Wylie East, 40-39, and Coppell handled Carrollton Newman Smith, 33-6, in the opening round of games. Coppell continued to roll against East, 38-20. Centennial stepped up to beat Newman Smith, 60-6, while East bested Newman Smith, 48-13, in its final game.
The Coppell-Centennial matchup was the second game between undefeated teams playing for a semifinal spot. Unlike the Guyer-Hebron game, this one was close to the end with Centennial slipping past Coppell, 35-31.
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