SABINE WINS! | Cardinals spank Elysian Fields, end 18-game losing streak; Russell’s first win as head coach
LIBERTY CITY – The drought is over. And no, we haven’t gotten any rain.
It’s been two years since the Sabine High School Cardinals football program has enjoyed a win. Well, now they can celebrate a win over the Elysian Fields Yellowjackets. And it wasn’t just a win: it was a downpour, 42-16, shattering the program’s 18-game losing streak.
It was also the first win as head coach of the Cardinals for first-year head coach Tim Russell.
Next week the Cardinals (1-1) travel to Mineola to take on another team of Yellowjackets.
The Yellowjackets took the opening kickoff deep at their 11-yard-line. The Cardinals’ defense came to play and pushed them back, forcing a punt from the 5. A short punt put the Cardinals with a short field of only 26 yards.
It didn’t take long as Princeton Jones took the handoff and squirted through the middle for the end zone. What looked to be an extra point saw Syler Pierce keep it and scamper in for two points, and an 8-0 lead instead.
After scoring their first touchdown since week eight of last season, the defense was not going to give up the lead.
The teams traded punts, then the ‘Jackets started off of a 38-yard punt return by Alex Simmons. They drove down to first and goal aided by a pass interference penalty on the Cards.
On fourth and goal, the Sabine defense hit the line hard and forced a fumble, where Aden Swanson scooped it up and took it to midfield. The first quarter ended with the Cardinal offense going backwards, however, and forced to punt.
The second quarter began like the first and the Cardinals’ defense forced a three-and-out. The offense was again gifted a short field and took four plays before Griffin DeHoyos found Pierce open for a 32-yard score. Victor Avalos added the extra point for a 15-0 Sabine lead.
Sabine’s defense finally gave up a first down to the ‘Jackets, but they then forced a turnover on downs. The combination of Jones and DeHoyos made for another scoring drive, as DeHoyos had a run of 21 sandwiched by runs of 10 and 12 by Jones.
The drive was capped with DeHoyos going the final 2 yards for the score. A botched snap on the extra point left the score at 21-0.
The Elysian Fields offense could not get any traction and were forced to punt again. A fumbled snap and a quick kick saw lineman Juneroel Bias of Sabine field the punt and return it 5 yards. The drive stalled with a missed field goal as the first half ended.
The second half began with a heavy dose of running by the Cardinals. That drive was stopped with a turnover on downs. The ‘Jackets followed suit and were also forced into a turnover on downs.
Things between the teams began to get chippy and the Cards were awarded 25 yards in penalties. DeHoyos took the first down snap and went around the left side for a 20-yard score. The extra point by Avalos put the Cards up 28-0.
The penalties continued to rain down as the Cardinals awarded the Jackets 45 yards in penalties and giving up the shutout. EF quarterback Austin Giles found Grant Farmer open for a 22 yard and a catch by Amarion Roberson hauled in the two-point conversion, cutting Sabine’s lead to 28-8.
Terry Vanden took the kickoff at the 1-yard line and cut right and rambled for an apparent 99-yard score, but naturally, there was yellow laundry on the field.
That didn’t deter the Cardinals for long, as Jones went for 15 yards, then broke free for a 60-yard score and a 35-8 lead.
With a win in site, the Sabine defense continued to wreak havoc.
On the second play after the score, Swanson snagged a Giles pass for his second turnover deep in Cardinal territory. Pierce took a jet sweep for 14 yards, followed by a 3-yard run by DeHoyos and the score to end the third quarter.
The fourth quarter saw each team trading punts. With the score out of reach, the Cardinal defense began resting some of its starters. The ‘Jackets took advantage and Alex Simmons took the handoff and was able to outrun the defense for a 93-yard score. Giles added the conversion for what would be the game’s final score, 42-16.
Sabine’s defense held the ‘Jackets in check for most of the game. Leading EF was Simmons with 133 yards rushing and a score. Giles had 41 yards passing and a score, and Farmer hauled in 26 yards and a score.
The Sabine offense put up good numbers. Jones led all players with 216 yards on the ground andtwo2 scores, while DeHoyos added 48 yards and three scores. He also had 32 yards through the air and a score, while Pierce was the recipient of those 32 yards.