The Woodlands Highlanders trip up the Atascocita Eagles, 24-14

SHENANDOAH, Texas -- The Woodlands Highlander (5-1, 2-0) football team came into their contest against the undefeated Atascocita Eagles battle-tested, and it showed. Despite not the most complete game, The Highlanders found a way to win 24-14 at Woodforest Bank Stadium Saturday night.

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“Defense played exceptionally well, shut them down the entire second half (outside of one drive),” said Highlander Head Coach Mark Schmid. “Means we are hurrying the quarterback, breaking up passes, a lot of good things about the defense. Special teams helped us flipped the field, give the offense shorter fields than they had. The offense came through and took advantage of the opportunities they had and made some big plays.”

Leading the way for the Highlanders was Patrick Carr, who carried the ball 16 times for 114 yards. Quarterback Matt Bonaguidi threw for 110 yards and two scores, and quarterback Chris Andritsos threw for 78 yards and a score. Wide receiver Chris Bell came down with four receptions for 75 yards and two touchdowns, and Kalif Johnson finished with 55 yards and a score on the night. The Highlanders finished the night with 331 yards of total offense, and two interceptions (TC Schneider and AJ Mason with one each) on defense.

The Eagles got a superb effort from quarterback Niyl Campbell, who ran the ball 24 times for 132 yards and a touchdown, and threw for an additional 70 yards. Running back Deneric Gibson rushed for 53 yards and a score in the defeat. The Eagles had 279 total yards of offense, and finished the night with three turnovers on the defensive side of the ball (all intercpetions), but couldn’t capitalize on them throughout the contest.

Atascocita (5-1, 1-1) was moving quickly to start the game, highlighted by a Deneric Gibson 30-yard run down to the Highlander 13-yard line. However the next play saw Campbell try a throw to the reverse side of the field, and Woodlands defensive back TC Schneider was ready for it and made the interception, returning the ball to the 17-yard line.

On the Highlanders first possession, the Eagle defense was ready to return the favor. Bonaguidi was a hair late on his attempted pass, and Atascocita defensive back Ramsey Thunder jumped the route for an interception to give the ball back to the Eagles at the Highlander 43-yard line.

The Eagles would capitalize on their interception, as a 3rd-and-15 would see quarterback Campbell get out of the pocket and scramble to the end zone for a 25-yard score, giving Atascocita a 7-0 edge, with 5:33 left in the first quarter.

The teams battled for field position for the next several series, until a 3rd-and-3 from midfield saw the Highlanders strike back. Bonaguidi dropped back and patiently hit senior wide receiver Kalif Johnson in stride as he got free behind the defense for a 50-yard score, evening the game at 7-7 with 9:54 left in the second quarter.

The Eagles next possession went three-and-out, and punt-returner Antoine Winfield Jr. picked up a bouncing ball at the Highlander 47-yard line and found a crease, taking the ball to the Eagles 26-yard line, setting The Woodlands up in prime position with 8:40 left in the second quarter.

The second play from scrimmage on that possession saw Carr get outside for a seven yard gain, and on 3rd-and-3 Bonaguidi found Chris Bell streaking down the sideline for a 20-yard strike, to give the Highlander a 14-7 advantage with 7:43 left in the half.

The next Eagle possession resulted in a 4th-and-inches, and Atascocita attempted a fake punt. The Highlander defense wasn’t fooled and tackled the Eagles for a loss to take over at the Atascocita 24-yard line with 6:45 left in the second quarter.

The Highlander drive ended with a successful 35-yard field goal for kicker Nacho Garcia, to widen the gap to 17-7 Highlanders with 4:39 left in the second quarter and close out the scoring for the half.

The Highlanders came out of the locker room with a quarterback change, as Chris Andritsos was taking the snaps from the shotgun. However, the first drive for the Highlanders was a quick three-and-out, and the Eagles offense was back on the field.

“This week Matt (Bonaguidi) was sick, he had a bug,” said Schmid. “Chris (Andritsos) got the lion's share of the repetitions this week and the majority of the practice time, so most of what we game-planned to do, Andritsos got in practice. Both kids did a great job and we’re blessed to have both of them.”

The first possession for the Eagles in the second half led to a focused, consistent drive that saw the Eagles move right down the field. Gibson ended the drive with a 4-yard scamper through the defense to tighten the game to 17-14 Highlanders, with 7:20 left in the third quarter.

The defenses started to take over the game at this point, and no one threatened with points for several drives. After a 62-yard punt for the Eagles took the ball to the Highlander 3-yard line, Carr busted free for 49-yard run to get the ball into Eagle territory and flip field position with 9:44 left to play. However the drive stalled due to penalties, and it was back on the Highlander defense to hold onto the lead.

Thankfully for The Woodlands, the defense was up to the task, forcing another three-and-out, and the Highlanders got the ball back at their own 41-yard line with 6:34 left looking to close out the game.

Closing out the game is exactly what happened. Trying to find a way to get points, Andritsos threw an out-route to Chris Bell, who beat his man and then cut back inside the field of play to get around the safety for a clutch 41-yard touchdown, giving the Highlanders much needed breathing room at 24-14 with 4:24 left to play.

The defense had no problems keeping momentum on the Highlanders side after the score. On 4th-and-5 from the Eagle’s 34-yd line, Campbell attempted a pass that was intercepted by Highlander’s defensive back AJ Mason at their own 49-yard line, and time had run out on the Eagles, as the Highlanders claimed the win 24-14.

“We’re not in the driver’s seat, but we’re in great position,” said Schmid. “Atascocita may be one of the better teams in the district, so getting a win over them makes me real happy. We have a rivalry game next week against College Park, so that’s always an interesting battle. After that we go into our bye week, so it would make me feel really good if we could go into that 3-0.”