ARLINGTON —
The already inflated penalty numbers from the Weatherford-Arlington Sam Houston football game could have been much higher Friday at Wilemon Field, but synchronizing personal fouls on three separate occasions saved the referees a lot of walking up and down the field.
Winning the turnover battle, and getting strapped for half the penalty yards of their opponents, the Kangaroos also conjured up some big plays en route to a 31-24 season-ending win.
Long-range pass plays and big runs, missing from Weatherford’s arsenal most of the season spelled doom for the Texans.
The game-winning score for WHS came just seconds into the final period, when Logan Guest broke free for a 62-yard scamper. Trey Rich, who also nailed a 31-yard field goal to close out the scoring in the first half, added his fourth point-after on the night to reach the final score.
The Roos had to come from behind in the win, down 17-7 midway through the second quarter.
Timely penalties from Houston, due mostly to extra-curricular activity after plays were whistled, helped Weatherford sustain drives and helped end several Texan marches. The Arlington school had 13 penalties on the night, totalling 135 yards.
But the improved consistency of the Weatherford offense was a primary factor in the Roos’ comeback. After taking the lead early in the fourth, the WHS defense contributed to the Texans’ self-destruction, which included a couple of player ejections.
Guest did some damage in the aerial attack, as well as his game-clinching run, when senior quarterback Colton Mallory found him open over the middle in the third quarter for a 38-yard TD reception. The touchdown put the Roos up by 7, until running back Trae Swift finished the Texans’ next possession with a 19-yard run to knot the score at 24.
Guest, who gained 70 yards on four rushing attempts, had 108 all-purpose yards for the Roos. Fred Brownlee was Weatherford’s leading ground gainer on the night, running for 120 yards, which included a 52-yard scoring run in the third period.
Tony Rodriguez was the top receiver for the Roos, gathering in three passes for 42 yards.
The referees struggled a bit to maintain control of the affair in the first half, as tempers flared for both teams in an evenly-matched contest neither wanted to lose.
But the flags, and lots of them, ultimately prevailed. Ultimately, the Roos were more intent on winning the game than incurring penalties, as the second half displayed.
Weatherford finishes its 2012 campaign with a 3-7 overall record (2-5 in district play).
Sam Houston finished 2-8, 1-6, with its lone district win over Paschall.
Weatherford 31
Arlington Houston 24
WHS 0 10 14 7 — 31
HHS 10 7 7 0 — 24
Scoring:
HHS — Ervin Hill 3 run
(Miquel Alvarez kick)
HHS — Alvarez 35 field goal
WHS — Chris Whitling 4 run (Trey Rich kick)
HHS — Andrew Alvarado 4 run (Alvarez kick)
WHS — Rich 31 field goal
WHS — Fred Brownlee 52 run (Rich kick)
WHS — Colton Mallory 38 pass to Logan Guest (Rich kick)
HHS — Trae Swift 19 run
(Alvarez kick)
WHS — Logan Guest 62 run (Rich kick)
Team Stats WHS HHS
First Downs 16 13
Rushes-Yards 42-291 34-221
Passing Yards 85 46
Comp-Att-Int 6-14-1 6-15-0
Total Yards 376 342
Penalties-Yards 6-70 13-135
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 5-2
Punts-Avg. N/A 5-37.1
Individual Leaders:
Rushing — WHS: Brownlee 7-120, Guest 4-70, Whitling 6-35, Daniel Ariaza 3-33, Matthew Garner 6-27; HHS: Swift 16-125, Alvarado 15-119
Passing — WHS: Mallory 4-8-1-1, 53 yds., Werts 2-6-0-0, 32 yds.; HHS: Hill 6-15-0-0, 45 yds.
Receiving — WHS: Tony Rodriguez 3-42, Guest 1-38; HHS: JaRickey 2-16, Alvarado 2-14, Swift 1-14.
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