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Great Scotland!: St. Michael's RB sinks Prestonwood's season in TAPPS quarterfinals
BY Matt Welch, mwelch@starlocalnews.com
WACO -- Austin St. Michael's rushing attack was not to be denied Saturday at the Waco ISD Sports Complex.
While resistance was occasionally offered, Prestonwood Christian Academy fell victim to the Crusaders' ground game when it mattered most in a 30-22 victory in TAPPS quarterfinal action.
"We just didn't take advantage of the opportunities we had at times," said Chris Cunningham, Prestonwood head coach. "Give [St. Michael's credit] because they did an awesome job and had us on our heels early. We just dug ourselves a hole and couldn't pull ourselves out of it."
Prestonwood got two more chances at the game-tying score but failed to amass another first down the rest of the afternoon. Field position was even in their favor at one stage, when the Lions recovered a fumble by Scotland Butler and were granted a 37-yard field with 5:47 left.
One play later, St. Michael's defensive back Walker Drewett picked off sophomore Grady Sullivan to restore possession to the Crusaders.
And then, as it had all game, St. Michael's rode the legs of Butler for the final 5:30.
Butler was dealt eight carries to keep the clock moving while quarterback Reed Carlton converted a fourth-and-four with a 6-yard run before Scotland ripped off a 20-yard scamper down to the Prestonwood 15 to put the game out of reach. The rush capped a 28-carry, 232-yard, two-touchdown performance by Butler, who gashed a Prestonwood defense operating without senior Mike Mitchell, who was unavailable due to what Cunningham described as a "combination of a sprained ankle and further complications regarding that."
"Anytime you're missing one of the best linebackers in the nation, you miss him a lot," he said. "[Mitchell is] a guy who all year has kept potential game-breaking runs to 3- or 4-yard gains."
Butler scored on two similar runs in a back-and-forth first half, darting up the middle for touchdown rushes of 48 and 40 yards.
The Lions were there to answer early, countering a 15-yard touchdown run by Carlton with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Sullivan to freshman Jonathan Heasley to tie the action at 7-7 with 4:38 left in the first quarter.
Butler's 48-yard score was matched with a 13-yard connection from Cash to freshman Ryan Bradberry but, after falling behind 20-14, turnovers got the better of the Lions.
The Crusaders picked off Sullivan three times and Bradberry lost a fumble just outside the St. Michael's red zone. The takeaways were promptly converted into points, with the Crusaders parlaying their first interception into a 32-yard field goal by Raul Allegre for a 24-14 edge they would carry into halftime. After the second interception stifled another drive deep in St. Michael's territory, the Crusaders capitalized on a defensive breakdown for a 76-yard touchdown pass from Carlton to Matt Vondrak for a 30-14 lead with 6:56 left in the third.
The turnovers were compounded by potential points left on the field to end the first half. The Lions moved to the St. Michael's 5 in the closing seconds and, upon getting off one more play, Cash threw the ball away with what appeared to be just under one second left on the clock.
After some initial discussion, the referees ruled that there was no time left and the Lions entered the locker room empty-handed.
"The play extended longer than we needed it to, but the ref on our sideline and the main official said we still had time," Cunningham said. "The back judge said we didn't and that his clock showed 0:00 when the ball hit the ground.
"I wasn't happy they said one thing and then conferred to reverse the call."
Cash rotated alongside Sullivan at quarterback in a by-committee approach in the wake of losing sophomore starter Mickey Mitchell to a knee injury three weeks ago. Each threw a touchdown pass with Sullivan going 21-of-28 for 152 yards and Cash tossing for 77 yards on 7-of-11 attempts.
"I felt like they each had some good moments and some moments where that inexperience caught up to them," Cunningham said. "They're both competitors and winners, and sometimes when you're young you try to do a little more than you need to."
The duo was plenty reliant on senior Grayson Warren, who ran for 137 yards and caught six balls for 51 yards. Bradberry added 87 yards on 10 catches.
It wasn't enough to upend St. Michael's, who remained unbeaten on the year while the Lions bowed out in the playoffs for the second straight year.
"I'm real proud of the seniors and the way they continued to fight," Cunningham said. "We've been through a lot of adversity with injuries and the like, and we had a lot of young kids out there playing today. This is something that'll help them next time they're out there."
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