Strong thunderstorms pushed through in the fourth quarter of several games, suspending play as officials pondered whether to resume play or reschedule.
Gusty winds, heavy rainfall and lightning forced officials to clear the fields for player safety.
For the Marcus Mauraders, it was not one but two rain delays in the fourth quarter, suspending play with about six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
Marcus faced Plano West where early in the game, the teams tied twice, first at 3-3 and then at 10-10 before Plano West took the lead. At both rain delays, the score stood at 47-32 with Plano West ahead. The final score was 54-32, giving Plano West the win.
Flower Mound Jaguars lost to the Lewisville Fighting Farmers 35-45 during the LHS homecoming game that halted near the end of the fourth quarter.
Denton Guyer, which started its game 30 minutes earlier against Keller Fossil Ridge, dominated the action in all four quarters with a final score of 43-3 just before the storm hit.
Liberty Christian, playing an away game against Midland Christian, won 20-13 after dominating early in the game before Midland Christian began scoring.
-Dawn Cobb
Marcus 17, Plano West 27
Many thought Plano West senior running-back Soso Jamabo had possibly become human after being held to just 60 yards on 14 carries in the close loss to Plano.
Jamabo proved those doubters wrong, as the Wolves (3-1 in district) pulled out a key district road win against Marcus (3-2 in district), playing through two lengthy weather delays, in which the highly-touted back ran wild, carrying the ball 23 times for a staggering 322 yards and 4 scores. His running outburst Friday brings his season total to 1,413 yards in just six games.
It was a struggle early for two of the top teams in Region 6A Class 6, as Plano West had two penalties on their first drive which forced them to punt, and Marcus had a sloppy drive in the first quarter that had three false starts.
Marcus took a quick 3-0 lead on a Daniel Blaney 21-yard field goal. West responded with a big run downfield by quarterback Robert Colmery, leading to a 52-yard field goal from Parker Davidson, tying the game 3-3 at the end of the first quarter.
Marcus has a chance to seize momentum early in the second, as Plano West muffed a punt and the Marauders took over with great field position. However it was not to be, as an Andrew Parrish fourth down pass was dropped. West responded quickly with a 45-yard touchdown run by Soso Jamabo. Marcus responded with a big run of their own to the West 4-yard line, which C.J Respass rumbled into the endzone to tie the game.
West’s next drive was ground-and-pound with Jamabo, ultimately ending in a touchdown pass from Colmery to Andrew Gillespie to give the Wolves a 17-10 lead. Marcus began a lengthy drive which included key throws to star junior tight end Kaden Smith, and ended in another short Respass touchdown run. With less than 2 minutes left in the half, Jamabo exploded for a 69-yard touchdown run to once again give West the lead.
Things could have taken a turn for the worse immediately on the next drive, as Parrish fumbled deep in Marauder territory, but the defense stepped up and held West scoreless.
The third quarter is where the Wolves started to run away with the game. Marcus’ first drive was a 3-and-out, and West tacked on a field goal to increase the lead to 27-17. Marcus was able to convert a 4th and short but settled for a punt. Typically good things happen when Soso Jamabo has the ball in his hands, and that stayed true as he flew downfield on another big touchdown run, going for 67 yards.
In the next drive, a snap went over Parrish’s head and West fell on the ball in the end zone, resulting in another touchdown, giving the Wolves a 40-14 lead.
The fourth quarter got underway and Parrish led a long drive, concluding in a touchdown pass to Jake Nelson. Any momentum the Marauders seem to regain fell flat however, as once again Jamabo had a wealth of daylight and sped in for a 59-yard score.
The Marauders would not go down without a fight, and drove the length of the field again, giving the ball to John Hutcherson for the score and an Andrew Parrish run for a two point conversion, cutting the lead to 47-32 West.
Just as West was forced to convert a crucial third down, a siren sounded and the game experienced its first weather delay. After 35 minutes, play was ready to resume. A second rain delay was called shortly afterward.
Marcus got the ball back with a chance to put themselves back in the game, but Parrish threw a critical interception while on the run. Colmery was able to find the endzone on a short touchdown run to put the game to rest and give West the win.
Plano West faces off with Lewisville next week at home at 7:30 p.m. Marcus travels to take on Plano East at the same time.
-Mitchell Mason
Flower Mound 35, Lewisville 45
The Flower Mound football team battled hard against Lewisville on Friday night at Goldsmith Stadium, but ultimately came up short in its bid for its first district win, losing 45-35 to the Farmers.
The Jags answered Lewisville’s first touchdown of the game with a 57-yard bomb from Logan Davis to Quentin Morris to tie the game up. Lewisville scored 17 unanswered points, but Flower Mound responded with touchdown runs from Jordan Moore (five yards) and Logan Davis (18 yards) to bring the game to within three points.
Lewisville scored late in the first half, and the Farmers led 31-21 at the break.
Lewisville scored first in the second half, and then Nick Ryan caught a 13-yard pass from Logan Ryan to make it 38-28.Moore would score again in the fourth quarter, but Flower Mound could not complete the comeback.
Flower Mound will host Hebron at 7 p.m. on Friday.
-John English
Denton Guyer 43, Keller Fossil Ridge, 3
The Guyer football team left no doubt about who is the king of district 5-6A on Friday night, defeating fellow district undefeated Keller Fossil Ridge by a score of 43-3.
Guyer quarterback Shawn Robinson hit David Haynes (21 yards) and Brand Daniel (23 yards) on first quarter touchdown passes and ran for a nine-yard score of his own, as the Wildcats took a 22-0 lead into the second.
Robinson picked up right where he left off in the second quarter, connecting with Alex Honey on a six-yard touchdown pass and Austin Luna on a 16-yard touchdown reception.In the third quarter, Robinson threw his fifth touchdown pass of the night, this one a 27-yard toss to Adam Scott, as the Wildcats put the game out of reach.
Guyer will host Keller Central at 7 p.m. Friday at C.H. Collins.
– John English
Liberty Christian 20, Midland Christian 13
The Liberty Christian football team improved its season record to 4-1 on Friday night with a 20-13 victory over Midland Christian in Midland.
The Warriors took a 6-0 lead in the first quarter on a five-yard run from Kaleb Powell to get Liberty the lead.
Liberty Christian would extend it’s lead to 13 when Nick Starkel hit Justus Lee on an eight yard pass.The Liberty defense came up big in the second quarter, as Hunter Griffith had a 40-yard interception return for a touchdown.
The Warriors were able to hold off a later rally by Midland Christian to get the victory.
Liberty Christian will host Bishop Dunne at 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
-John English
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