The Play-offs Round 2 - Cedar Park vs Kerrville Tivy

For the second round, I decided to head north to Georgetown to see the Cedar Park Timberwolves play the Kerrville Tivy Antlers.  Both teams had perfect 11-0 records going into the game.  Cedar Park is ranked #1 in Texas in Class 5A and Kerrville is ranked #6.  They also brought a lot of history with them.  For the past three years, they have met in the play-offs, with the T’wolves eliminating the Antlers every time.  Can they do it a fourth time and advance?  Or will the Antlers finally prevail?  I’ll find out after I get some barbeque. . .

The Barbeque

When I was in Georgetown earlier in the season, the pickings were a little slim.  Rather than risk having to eat at a BBQ franchise place, I took my wife with me to GreenMesquite BBQ and More.  It is located at 1400 Barton Springs Road in the heart of Austin and has been serving food since 1988.  I was a bit apprehensive when I saw “and More” on the sign out front.

I ordered the usual combination of moist brisket and ribs.  The brisket was indeed moist and tender.  While it did have some bark on the outside, there was no noticeable smoke ring and not much of a smoky flavor.  The ribs were chewy.  I mean like jerky chewy.  My jaw literally got tired from chewing on a piece of end meat.  Their sauce was just another typical ketchup based sauce – nothing to write home about.  My wife got brisket and turkey, with a side of fried okra.  The turkey was good and the okra was very tasty.  I ate a small scoop of peach cobbler for desert and it was good. 

Green Mesquite seemed like a really nice place to eat, drink a few beers, and listen to a live band.  Nice, friendly staff.  Lots of interesting pictures covering the walls.  Their burgers and chicken fried steak may very well be good.  But as far as the barbeque is concerned. . .  just another place serving “cooked meat”.

The Game

How they got here. . .  Cedar Park was the Class 5A District 25 champion.  They beat Bastrop 49-14 in the first round.  Kerrville was the Class 5A District 27 champion.  They eliminated San Antonio McCollum 63-21 to advance to the second round.

Another beautiful night for football in Georgetown.  Clear skies, no real wind, temperature 66 degrees at kick-off.  A good size crowd for both schools.  This should be a good one. . .

Tivy started the game from their own 25 after the opening kick-off.  On third and ten, running back Wyatt Trahan took an option pitch around end for a gain of 23 yards.  The Antlers moved the ball to the Cedar Park 24, but their drive stalled and they turned the ball over on downs.  The T’wolves made a couple of first downs, moving out to the Tivy 48.  Their drive stalled and they were forced to punt.

 

The Antlers started their second possession from their own 7.  On third and 1 from the 16, quarterback Cade Dyal connected with Ian Ronan for a big gain to midfield.  On second and 7, Dyal’s next pass was intercepted by Gunar Chriswisser and returned to the Tivy 38.  A personal foul on the Antlers during the return set Cedar Park up deep in Tivy territory.  It took the T’wolves only one play to score as quarterback Mak Sexton found Tommy Lavine open for a 27 yard touchdown.  The extra point made it 7-0 with 3:09 left in the first quarter.

Tivy took the kick-off on their 12 and returned it to the 21.  Passes from Dyal and runs by Trahan moved the ball to the T’wolves 21 as the first quarter ended.  After switching ends of the filed, the Antlers continued their attack.  After a false start penalty moved Tivy back to the 19, Hayden Schreckenbach took an option pitch into the end zone.  The extra point tied the game at 7 with 11:45 to go in the second.

Cedar Park started their next drive on their own 39 after a 18 kick-off return.  Facing third and 9, Sexton lofted the ball deep to Jack Grimm who was tackled on the Tivy 28.  On second and 2, Sexton hooked up with Grimm again, this time on a post pattern over the middle for a 26 yard touchdown.  The extra point was no good, but the T’wolves were up 13-7 with 10:27 left in the second quarter.

The Antlers returned the kick-off 17 yards to their 26.  Dyal was sacked on first down for a 9 yard loss.  After a 1 yard run by Dyal, the Antlers were facing third and 18.  A defensive holding penalty against the T’wolves gave Tivy the ball on their 34.  The Antlers marched down the field behind the passing of Dyal and runs by Trahan.  A wide receiver screen set them up with first and goal from the Cedar Park 10.  On third and goal from the 10, Dyal was pressured by the T’wolves defense.  His pass was picked off in the end zone by Christwasser, killing the Antler drive and setting up Cedar Park on their 20 yard line.

On second and 13, Sexton threw deep to Grimm for a first down on the Tivy 42.  On the next play, Sexton found Tommy Lavine open for a 42 yard touchdown strike.  Sexton hooked up with Lavine again for the two point conversion, extending the T’wolves lead to 21-7 with 4:16 left in the second quarter.

Timberwolves on the move

The two teams traded possessions.  A bad punt of only 15 yards set the Antlers up on the T’wolves 46 with 1:41 left to play.  Dyal threw a pass slightly behind Hutch White, but he made a great catch to set up a first down on the Cedar Park 20.  The combination worked again as Dyal hit White on a 20 yard touchdown pass.  With 49 seconds left in the second quarter, Tivy cut Cedar Park’s lead to 21-14.

The T’wolves took possession on their 25 after the kick-off sailed through the end zone.  They needed only 41 seconds to move the ball 75 yards in eight plays for another score.  On third and 10 from the Antlers 12 yard line, Lavine threw a halfback pass to Rocky Ferony.  The extra point made the half time score 28-14.

Cedar Park received the third quarter kick-off.  The picked up a couple of first downs and moved to their 45 where the drive stalled.  A 55 yard punt was downed on the Tivy 5 where the Antlers took over.  They picked up a couple of first downs as well, but their drive stalled on their 45 yard line and they were forced to punt. 

Starting from their 24, Sexton tossed a wide receiver screen that picked up a T’wolves first down on their 39.  Facing third and 9, Sexton connected with Tommy Lavine over the middle.  He bounced outside and was tackled on the Antlers 24.  Three plays by the T’wolves netted 9 yards.  Rather than kick a field goal, the decided to go for it on fourth and 1.  Tyler Lavine picked up the first down and more as he cashed in for a 15 yard touchdown run.  That made the score 35-14 with 6:17 to go in the third quarter.

The Cedar Park machine was running smoothly now.  Tivy went three and out after receiving the kick-off.  Starting from the T’wolves 39, Sexton led a 61 yard drive for another score behind passes to Jack Grimm and runs by Tyler Lavine.  On second and goal from the Antlers four, Sexton rolled out and found Tyler Lavine in the end zone for another touchdown.  That made the score 42-14 with 3:02 left in the third quarter.

Cedar Park about to score again

The Cedar Park defense stuffed Tivy on their next two possessions, going three and out and later turning the ball over on downs.  With 8:38 remaining in the game, the T’wolves started from their own 46.  Sexton once again led them on a long drive for a score.  Tyler Lavine plunged over from the 1 to ring up another touchdown.  With 3:42 to play, Cedar Park was up 49-14. 

Tivy got the ball one last time, but was again shut down by the T’wolves defense.  Cedar Park took possession, lined up in the victory formation, and killed the clock to win 49-14.

Early in the game, Tivy controlled the clock.  Their offensive line opened holes for big gains by Wyatt Trahan and gave Cade Dyal the time he needed to complete passes down field.  Their defense shut down the usually potent T’wolves ground game, but gave up yards and points as Mak Sexton connected with Jack Grimm and Tommy Lavine.  When the Antlers had a chance to take a lead in the second quarter, Gunnar Christwasser’s second interception of the night proved to be the game changer for Cedar Park.  Letting the T’wolves score a touchdown in less than a minute to push the lead back to 14 points at half time was a killer for Tivy.

Cedar Park is not a football team, but more of a machine that grinds down their opponents.  That was certainly true in the second half.  Their pass rush started to bring consistent pressure on Dyal and they shut down the Antlers ground attack.  Having burned the Antlers with deep passes in the first half, the T’wolves used their running game to wind down the clock and pad their lead. 

With the win, Cedar Park’s record remains unblemished.  They will face Edcouch Elsa in San Antonio in the third round.  Tivy’s season ends with a record of 11-1.  For the fourth consecutive year, they were eliminated by Cedar Park.