A fitting homecoming

The Mustangs demolished Lampasas, 42-15, Friday, snapped a three-game losing streak and recorded their first win of District 25-4A.

In the process they ensured alumni were able to enjoy their final homecoming at Mustang Stadium, 1511 Pony Circle Drive. A new stadium opens next year.

“The kids deserve to win the ballgame,” head coach Cord Woerner said. “We talked about the ups and downs and the good times. They had a great week of work. They picked it up a notch this week.”

Marble Falls was simply dominant in the first half, scoring on four of their five possessions. 

The Mustangs took their opening drive 72 yards for a touchdown. Fullback Austin Sparks gained 35 yards on the ground, while running back Quinton Causey added 15. Quarterback Thor Woerner passed to Ryan Henson for 11 yards on third and seven. Woerner punched the ball in from four yards out.

After Lampasas recorded a first down, the Badgers went backward. A high snap forced the punter to run after the ball and he was tackled by Sparks.

As a reward, on fourth and three, Sparks was given the ball and scored from eight yards out to give the Mustangs a 14-0 lead. The five-play, 15-yard drive took less than a minute.

On third and 10, the Badgers fumbled and linebacker Sebastian Roman recovered on the Lampasas 24.

Sparks ran for nine yards on first down, while Causey scored from 15 yards out for a 21-0 lead at the 11:51 mark of the second quarter.

The Badgers had another bad snap, but the punter caught it and ran it three yards. However, it was not enough for the first down.

Meanwhile, the Mustangs took over at the Badger 40. Woerner found Cameron Venghaus for nine yards and Causey for another six. Sparks ran for 11 and five yards before scoring from three yards out.

On the ensuing possession, the Badgers moved the ball 43 yards, but Roman intercepted. However, Lampasas recorded an interception to get the ball back.

Lampasas successfully recovered an onside kick on their 47 to start the second half but fumbled on the Mustang three.

Marble Falls had no such trouble as the Mustangs went 97 yards in eight plays highlighted by a 19-yard Sparks run, a 32-yard Woerner run and a 29-yard Causey run. Causey scored from the six for a 35-0 lead.

“That was real big the second half and big not to let them gain momentum,” head coach Woerner said about the fumble and the drive. 

Lampasas scored on a 13-yard pass to Jonathan VanLiew from Vann Millican, 35-7, with 1:51 left in the third quarter.

Marble Falls got the touchdown back thanks to a 70-yard, eight-play drive where Woerner completed a pass to Saif Khan for 14 yards, another to Sparks for 15 and a 30-yard touchdown pass to Justin Garcia, 42-7, with 10:46 left in the game.

Lampasas scored a touchdown on a four-yard pass to Ronnie Branch from Millican and then added a two-yard run to end the scoring. The 62-yard, 14-play drive took five minutes to complete.

The Mustangs skipper said the key to the victory was in the trenches.

“I think the big thing honestly was our kids did a good job upfront,” he said. “We were able to control the line of scrimmage.”

Winning the turnover battle also was big, but that was because of how aggressive the Mustangs were, Woerner said. 

“When you start flying around and you start hitting people, that’s when turnovers occur,” he said. 

Causey said the credit for the Mustangs gaining more than 200 yards on the ground and throwing for more than 100 goes to the offensive line.

“Our line was blocking good and we got some good yards on them,” he said. 

As for the dominating defensive performance, Causey said the Mustangs were not surprised by what the Badgers called.

“We knew what they were going to run,” he said. 

Roman said only one reason exists for the turnovers.

“A hard-working defense,” he said. “We practice a lot getting pressure and helping.” 

The players are not willing to concede the end of the season just yet, Causey said.

“We’re trying to get to the playoffs,” he said. “It feels good to win the homecoming game.”

Roman agreed.

“It felt pretty good,” he said of the win. “We have a lot of confidence in ourselves.”

jfierro@thepicayune.com