Hondo Anvil Herald (Hondo, Tex.), Vol. 128, No. 49, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 7, 2000 Page: 11 of 52
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The Hondo Anvil Herald, Thursday, December 7r 2000, Page 11
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Heart-stopper;
heart-breaker
Mathis survives, 22-21
By Jeff Berger
Anvil Herald Sports Editor
Kingsville - A successful football
season ended a little sooner than the
Hondo Owls hoped Saturday, in a gut-
wrenching, 22-21 regional semifinal
playoff loss to Mathis at Texas A&M-
Kingsville’s Javelina Stadium.
The loss to the Pirates ends
Hondo’s year at 11-2, while Mathis,
12-1, goes on to face La Grange in
the Class 3A, Division II, Region IV
championship game this Saturday at
Alamo Heights. Game time is 1 p.m.
A problem with one-point losses
is that virtually any one play can be
singled out as a turning point. In the
end, however, Hondo Coach Jack
Rushing gave credit where it was due.
“Mathis is well-coached and they
played well. Their quarterback (Jus-
tin Soza) made some exceptional
plays. How many passes did he com-
plete when he had our guys hanging
all over him?”
Soza was 11 -of-17 on the night for
115 yards through the air, and two
or three of those passes came as he
appeared to be on his way to a sack.
In addition to Soza’s outstanding
efforts, the general effect of the Pi-
rates’ misdirection-laden offense was
carried out well. It led to two backs
going over the 100-yard mark for the
night. Halfback Michael Ozuna car-
ried 13 times for 136 yards rushing,
in addition to his six catches for 50
yards. Bruising fullback Troy
Collavo fought off a second quarter
shoulder injury to finish with 135
yards on 20 rushes.
The Pirates picked up 27 first
downs and 329 yards rushing, both
season highs for Hond" opponents.
And it was the P, tes who
steamrolled 80 yards down the field
for a score after the opening kickoff.
With seven carries from Collavo, in-
cluding the 1-yard plunge for a
touchdown, Mathis took a 7-0 lead
less than four minutes into the game.
Hondo, held without a touchdown
on its first possession for just the sec-
ond time in its 13 games, punted on
its first two possessions.
Mathis took over at its 13 after the
second Owl punt. Collavo burst up
the middle for 25 yards, but on the
first play sustained the shoulder in-
jury. Two plays later, Raul Villarreal,
Collavo’s backup, was splattered in
the backfield by Tim Leal, who had
lined up at nose guard instead of his
customary spot at strong safety. On
the play. Leal came away with the
ball, and the Owls had a first down
at the Mathis 41.
Jess Hackebeil tore up the middle
for 12, and two carries by Ernie Tapia
got it to the endzone. The 9-yard TD
run was punctuated by Layne
Neumann’s extra point, tying the
game with 9:35 left in the half.
Mathis' David Rivers had diffi-
culty handling the kickoff and was
plowed under by Chris Ael voet at the
5. The Pirates drove steadily into
PHOTO BY LOIS DAVIS
Ernie Tapia breaks loose for what would turn out to be the final touchdown of his career, a 25-yard dash in the second quarter. The Hondo senior
tailback finishes his three varsity seasons with 4,173 rushing yards and 74 career touchdowns. He had 162 yards rushing against Mathis.
Hondo territory, but the drive stalled
at the 39, forcing a punt.
From the 20, the Owls again
needed only three plays. Tapia
plowed around left end for 53 yards
on first down. On 2nd-and-8, he burst
through the line for 25 yards and the
74th touchdown of his career.
Mathis used all of the remaining
2:52 of the half to drive the length of
the field. After a middle screen to
Ozuna was snuffed out by Blake
Halbardier for a five-yard loss, the
Pirates converted a 3rd-and-11 with
a 15-yard gain on a wraparound draw
to Collavo. Soza then hit Ozuna for
23 yards and twice connected with
Tito Villarreal for six yards to get the
Pirates to the Hondo 8. After two in-
complete passes to the endzone,
Mathis went fof the field goal. B.R.
Moreno’s 25-yard effort made it a
14-10 lead as time expired.
“That drive was crucial for them,”
Coach Rushing said. “They did a good
20th Annual
Hondo Girls’
Basketball
Tournament
Dec. 7 & 9, 2000
Sat., noon, OG
Kerrville Tivy
Si ? *•
Thuro., 9. AC
Consolation
f
Thure.,
3. AC
t mi
.-a-.. fzqprr i
s
• , T
t
Sat., 9, OG
7th Place
Thure.,
6, AC
Medina Valley
Thure., 10.30, AC
Ingram
Hondo JV
Thure., noon, AC
Scut! .aide
Lytle
Thure., 1:30, AC
Hondo
Thure.
4:30, AC
Sat., noon, AC
3rd Place
Thure.,
,7:30, AC
Sat, 1:30, AC
Championship
AC - HHS Activities Center
OG - HHS Old Gym
Tourney Time 2000
16 teams head to Hondo for plenty of hoops
Today’s quiz...
Q: What’s the best cure for Foot-
ball Withdrawal Syndrome?
A: Actually, it was a trick question,
because there is no known cure for
FWS. However, a good, healthy dose
of basketball couldn’t hurt.
And that’s where this weekend’s
activities come in.
For the 20th year, Hondo High
School is hosting-the Hondo Basket-
ball Tournament. Eight girls’ and boys’
teams will fill up the nets for 24 games
until two champions are crowned.
The Hondo boys will be going for
their fourth straight crown, while the
Kerrville Tivy girls will be looking
to defend the title they won in 1999.
Today (Thursday), the girls’ teams
take the floor of the Activities Cen-
ter, beginning at 9 a.m. Tivy will open
against perennial 2A power Poth in
the opener. At 10:30, Medina Valley
battles Ingram, followed by a noon
contest between the Hondo JV and
Southside. In the final first-round
matchup, the Hondo varsity faces
Lytle at 1:30. Second round contests
will take place later ii the day, with
final round action set for Saturday.
20th Annual
Hondo Bpye’
Basketball
Tournament
Dec. 5-9.2000
Del Rio JV
Sat, 10:30, OG
Consolation
■N '%%
AC-'HWSAcSM^UCentlr
OG - HHS Old Gym
job getting the ball down the field.”
The Owls held the lead at halftime,
despite having had the ball just six
minutes, 36 seconds. Both of Hondo’s
TD drives took less than a minute.
Hondo took the second half kick-
off and overcame 40 yards in penal-
ties to go 81 yards for the score. Se-
nior QB Zach Stein had four comple-
tions on the night and all came on
that one drive. He hit Derek Boehle
with a screen pass that covered over
50 yards, but most was erased be-
cause of an illegal block. A pass to
tight end Tim Graff gave the Owls
their next first down at the Hondo 47.
After three five-yard penalties, in-
cluding two against the Owls, Tapia
went 14 yards to set up a 2nd-and-1.
Hackebeil gained six, followed by an
11 -yard strike to Graff. On 3rd-and-
7 from the 24, Stein hit Boehle for
the first down, and the senior split end
raced to the endzone for the TD with
5:31 left in the quarter. Neumann’s
kick gave Hondo a 21 -10 lead.
A big hit by Hackebeil on the kick-
off put the Pirates at the 16. But Soza
guided Mathis out of the hole, find-
ing Villarreal for 23 yards, and then
connecting with Ozuna for 10 to
midfield. After Soza kept for another
first down, he passed to Villarreal for
16 yards to the 15.
Confusion was ndver more evident
than the next play, when both
Collavo and Soza carried out their
fakes, and the ball somehow ended
up in the hands of Dimitri Garcia,
who went 15 yards undetected
around the left end for a score. With
1:51 left in the third, the Pirates opted
to go for two, but Collavo’s forward
progress was stopped inches short of
the goal, leaving the score at 21-16.
A .•*'
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PHOTO BY LOIS DAVIS
Somewhere in the celebration, amidst Lance Saathoff (79), Michael
Muennink (78), Nathan Fillinger (67), Jess Hackebeil (32), and Nick
Finger (24, barely visible in the pile) is Derek Boehle, who made a
third quarter touchdown reception.
Two carries by Tapia and one by
Hackebeil netted 18 yards and a first
down at the Mathis 49 as the third
period ended.
As the fourth quarter opened, the
Owls, now with the stiff north wind
behind them, went to the air. Stein
went to Finger on a flag route, but
Villarreal was with him step for step
and made the interception at the 17.
■■ra
TEAMSmiSTICS^
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
On Friday, the boys’ teams will be
in action, starting at 9, when the Del
Rio JV faces Medina Valley. The Del
Rio squad was a late replacement for
Bandera, which is still involved in
football. At 10:30 are two teams which
were involved in football until two
weeks ago: Wimberley and Flores-
ville. Cole plays in the noon game
against a school still playing football,
which may sound familiar: Mathis,
then at 1:30, Hondo takes on Ingram
in the last opening-round game. Again,
semifinals are later Friday, with cham-
pionship munds scheduled Saturday.
Hondo.........................................Mathis
15.....................First Downs.....................27
32-232 ............Rushes-Yards 49-329
4-7-1.....................Passes.................11-17-0
69...................Passing Yards.................115
0-0...................Fumbles-Lost...................5-1
0............................Sacks............................0
3-6...........3rd Down Conversions 4-7
0-1...........4th Down Conversions 1-1
2-31.0.............Punts-Average.............2-28.0
6..........Return Yards (Punt-Int-Fum)..........0
26.............Returti Yards (Kickoff).............23
8-55...............Penalties-Yards...............3-15
19:29..........Time of Possession..........28:31
SCORING SUMMARY
Hondo.....................0.14 ...7 0 - .21
Mathis.....................7... 3...6 6 - 22
M - Collavo 1 run (Moreno kick) (IQ, 8:20)
H ■ Tapia 9 run (Neumann kick) (2Q, 9:35)
H - Tapia 25 run 'Neumann kick) (2Q, 2:52)
M - Moreno 25 FG (2Q, 0:00)
H - Boehle 24 pass from Stein (Neumann kick)
(3Q, 5:31)
M - Garcia 15 run (run failed) (3Q, 1:51)
M - Soza 1 run (pass tailed) (4Q, 6:40)_
Hondo
Rushing.....
E. Tapia
...... 18.162 90 .53 2
J Hackebeil
..........9 55 6 1 . 12... 0
N Finger
2 9 4 5 9 0
l Stem .
3 6.20 10 0
Passing ....
Cmp.. Att.. Int Yds Lng. TD
Z Stem
4 7 1 69 24 1
Receiving..
.........Rec Yds Avg Lng .. TD
D Boehle ...
..............2 . 46 23.6... 24 .... t
T Graft.......
..............2 . 23 115... 12 .. . 0
Mathis
Rushing.....
M Ozuna ...
............ 13 136 10.5. .30 .... 0
T Collavo ...
............20.135 . 6.8... 25 .... 1
D Garcia...
............... 5 34 ,6.8... 15... 1
J. Soza......
........ 10 27 . 2.7... 12 ... 1
R Villarreal
..............1 ... —3 -3.0... -3 .... 0
Passing ....
Cmp.. Att.. Int Yds Lng ..TD
J. Soza.....
11... 17.....0 115... 23 0
Receiving.
..........Rec Yds Avg Lng .. TD
T Villarreal
...........5 65 13 0 . 23 .... 0
M Ozuna
........ 6 50 . 8 3 23 .... 0
The Piiates went back to work, mm
ing the 83 yards in 12 plays for the
score. Villarreal, who had 65 yards on
five catches, grabbed on for 14 yards,
followed by a 30-yard run for Ozuna
to the Hondo 28. Collavo pounded
ahead for nine yards and Sq/a
scrambled for three and a first dow n
After Halbardier dropped Ozuna for a
loss, Ozuna eame back with a 12-yard
run to the 5. Three plays later, on the
Pirates only third down of the drive.
Soza scored from the 1. The two-point
pass attempt was picked off in the end-
zone by Taylor Wilson, limiting
Mathis' lead to 22-21.
After a reverse on the kickoff w as
stopped at the 14, the Owls began to
drive. Tapia gained 10 yards to the
24, followed by a seven-yard gain b>
Hackebeil. Tapia, who finished the
game with 162 yards on 18 carries,
picked up a first down and Finger
went nine yards to the 43. Hackebeil
carried twice more, and the Ow ls
faced a 2nd-and-8 at the 48. Tapia
gained six, setting up a 3rd-and-2 at
the Mathis 46. The Owls went back
to the same play which had worked
for 53 yards earlier, behind the block
ing of senior linemen Nathan Fill
inger and Michael Muennink But
this time, Mathis had it defended,
bouncing Tapia to the outside There
Chris Aguilar dropped him fora two
yard loss. On 4th-and-4, the Owl-
See OWLS. / -
Bacon Cheddar
Burger w/Lg. Tots,
$099
6T
plus
lax
Tty our new
Holiday
Peppermint shake
Salt good Dec 1-11.2000
The HHS
Football Seniors:
Garrett Bader
Derek Boehle
Bobby Coyle
Trey Escamilla
Nathan Fillinger
Nick Finger
Jess Hackebeil
Blake Halbardier
Sean Lara
Tim Leal
Larry Mille'r
Michael Muennink
Chris Myers
Andrew Robertucci
Lance Saathoff
Zach Stein
Ernie Tapia
John Wiemers
Michael Wiemers
Taylor Wilson
hg*f
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Hondo Anvil Herald (Hondo, Tex.), Vol. 128, No. 49, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 7, 2000, newspaper, December 7, 2000; Hondo, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth818999/m1/11/: accessed June 20, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Hondo Public Library.