Since joining the Houston-area district in 2004, the Lufkin Panthers were the team that had all the answers in finding a way to come out on top.
On Friday night, it was a gritty group of Highlanders that had all the answers. Trent Eckel threw for four first-half touchdowns, and the Highlanders capitalized on some key Lufkin mistakes in the second half as The Woodlands ended Lufkin's run of six straight district titles with a 31-21 decision at Abe Martin Stadium Friday night.
Joel Andrews/The Lufkin Daily News |
Lufkin wide receiver Earon Johnson has a throw go over his head during District 14-5A action at Abe Martin Stadium Friday night. The Woodlands' Chris Julius defends on the play. The Woodlands took a 31-21 win over Lufkin to clinch the District 14-5A championship.
|
The Woodlands clinched the district title with the win, while Lufkin will need a win at Oak Ridge next week to secure Class 5A Division II's top seed.
"We didn't play very good football very consistently tonight," Lufkin head coach John Outlaw said. "But make no mistake about it. We got beat by a very good football team."
The Woodlands outgunned the Panthers in a shootout of a first half as the Highlanders held a 28-21 lead. The second half was much more defensive with the Highlanders getting their only score on a 32-yard Ben Pruitt field goal.
Eckel led The Woodlands' offensive attack with 253 yards and four touchdowns on 11-of-25 passing.
Jonathan Wilcher led The Woodlands' receivers with three receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown.
For the most part, Lufkin was able to contain The Woodlands' top offensive threat, Daniel Lasco. He finished the night with 95 yards on 22 rushes and also caught a 29-yard touchdown pass.
"Lasco's a great player, but they've been throwing it pretty effectively all year," Outlaw said. "Their quarterback did a great job tonight."
Lufkin's Deauntre Smiley threw for 228 yards and two touchdowns on 16-of-34 passing.
His leading receiver was Quinn Trimble, who had seven receptions for 124 yards and two scores. Jamarcus Walker also had a strong night with 82 yards rushing on 11 attempts.
However, some critical mistakes, including a dropped touchdown pass and an interception in the end zone on a potential game-tying drive, proved costly for the Pack.
"We hadn't turned it over in the last few games and we did tonight," Outlaw said. "When you make those mistakes against good teams, they're going to make you pay for them."
A high-flying first half saw the teams combine for 49 points, 463 yards and just two punts.
Six of the seven scoring plays went for at least 20 yards and The Woodlands emerged with a 28-21 lead after 24 minutes of nonstop action.
The Woodlands got on the board first as Eckel hit Wilcher with a 64-yard touchdown. Eckel hit Wilcher with the pass and a gamble by a Lufkin defender left a wide open path for Wilcher for the 7-0 lead.
That lead did not last long as Lufkin scored on the first play of its second possession. Trimble hauled in a 50-yard pass from Smiley but the extra point was blocked, leaving the score at 7-6.
The Woodlands then took just two plays to answer the Panthers. Eckel hit Randy Knust for a 40-yard touchdown pass to make the score 14-6.
The Panthers responded with a touchdown on a long scoring drive. Smiley finished the drive with a 9-yard touchdown run then added a two-point conversion run to knot the game at 14.
Lufkin then forced a punt and took its first lead of the night as Smiley eluded a Highlander defender and found a wide open Trimble for a 36-yard score that gave the Panthers a 21-14 lead.
The Woodlands then tied the game as Eckel found Peter Falivene for a 20-yard touchdown pass to make it 21-21 with 3:12 left in the half.
The Woodlands took advantage of a late Lufkin turnover to take the lead into the half as Lasco got free behind the Lufkin defense and scored on a 29-yard screen pass from Eckel to make it 28-21.
Eckel finished the first half with 209 yards and four touchdowns on 8-of-17 passing. Wilcher was his top target with two receptions for 101 yards.
Meanwhile, Lufkin had strong halves from Smiley, who was 8-of-19 passing for 173 yards and two touchdowns, and Trimble, who had five receptions for 120 yards and two touchdowns.
Lufkin had a chance to tie the game in the third quarter but a dropped touchdown pass and an interception in the end zone kept Conroe with the lead.
The Woodlands then got some breathing room on a Pruitt field goal with 11:19 remaining and the Highlanders' defense took over from there.
Lufkin (7-2, 3-1) finishes the regular season against Oak Ridge at Woodforest Bank Stadium Friday night. The Woodlands (9-0, 4-0) finishes with a home game against New Caney Thursday.
The Woodlands 31, Lufkin 21
Score by quarters
The Woodlands 14 14 0 3— 31
Lufkin 14 7 0 0— 21
Scoring summary
First quarter
The Woodlands — Jonathan Wilcher 64 pass from Trent Eckel (Ben Pruitt kick), 6:31.
Lufkin — Quinn Trimble 50 pass from Deauntre Smiley (kick blocked), 6:13.
The Woodlands — Randy Knust 40 pass from Eckel (Pruitt kick), 5:17.
Lufkin — Smiley 9 run (Smiley kick), 0:26.
Second quarter
Lufkin — Trimble 36 pass from Smiley (Luis Garcia kick), 6:26.
The Woodlands — Peter Falivene 20 pass from Eckel (Pruitt kick), 3:12.
The Woodlands — Daniel Lasco 29 pass from Eckel (Pruitt kick), 0:34.
Fourth quarter
The Woodlands — Pruitt 32 field goal, 11:19.
Team statistics
Lufkin Wood
First downs 18 18
Rushes 30-106 35-61
Passing yards 228 253
Passes, Comp, Att, Int 16-34-1 11-25-1
Punts 4-43.5 6-36.2
Fumbles 2-2 3-0
Penalties 9-105 7-60
Individual statistics
Rushing: The Woodlands: Daniel Lasco 22-95, Randy Knust 1-21, Trent Eckel 12-(-55); Lufkin: Jamarcus Walker 11-82, Deauntre Smiley 18-19, Tra Horace 1-5.
Passing: The Woodlands: Eckel 11-25-1-253; Lufkin: Smiley 16-34-1-228.
Receiving: The Woodlands: Jonathan Wilcher 3-102, Peter Falivene 3-44, Brett Felton 2-40, Randy Knust 2-38, Daniel Lasco 1-29; Lufkin: Quinn Trimble 7-124, Earon Johnson 4-38, Tra Horace 3-34, Jamarcus Walker 2-32.
