Comanches lose heartbreaker in state final
Saturday, December 20, 2003
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Shiner put on a state championship effort but came up one point short in the Class 1A state championship game Saturday at Waco ISD Stadium.
Seniors of the 2003 Shiner Comanche state runner-up football team are left to right, front row, Mason McCorkle, Trey Rainosek, Marcus Lopez, Garet Pustka, Trevor Simper and Jeremy Parr, manager; back row, Dustin Brown, Jeremy Burchell, Desmond Brooks, Todd Wenske, Steven Evans, Quentin Wright, Brady Strauss and Casey Coleman. (all photos by Shiner Gazette)
The Windthorst Trojans won the Class 1A state title with a 28-27 win over the Comanches. The difference was a missed extra point by sophomore Ryan Kloesel with just :32 left in the game.
Quarterback Garet Pustka had pulled the Comanches to within the 1-point with a 3-yard touchdown run.
Windthorst finishes the season with a 15-1 record, while Shiner ends the year at 14-2.
Both schools won the state title previously, Windthorst in 1996 and Shiner in 1986.
"We played a good team today. I'm proud of our guys who gave it everything.
"In the second half our guys came out and we showed what we're made of," said Coach Steven Cerny.
Down 21-14, the Comanches came out, scored a touchdown in the third while holding the Trojans scoreless.
In the fourth period, after falling behind again, Shiner rallied to score with just seconds on the clock. The PAT would probably have sent the game into overtime.
Cerny said there will be some second guessing on the call to kick rather than go for two points for the win.
Garet Pustka goes over the top to score his second touchdown of the game as the Comanche line blocks out Chad Green (5) and Grant Moer (51).
"They had a good defense and we had an easier chance of making the kick which would have sent the game into overtime. And the momentum was with us."
"Ryan feels bad and I feel for him but we had the opportunities and should have scored earlier," said Cerny.
"Things happen throughout the game that determine the outcome of a game and it isn't always the last minute efforts although that's what most people will remember."
It was the big plays that kept Shiner having to play catch up. The big plays included touchdown passes of 68 and 38 yards and completions for 50 yards and 40 yards to set up the other two touchdowns.
Trojan quarterback Chad Green completed l0-of-14 passes for a total of 262 yards.
Shiner, meanwhile, did what they've done best all year. They ran with the triple threat of Pustka, Chris Baer and Quentin Wright, gaining 331 yards on 63 plays.
Pustka completed 2-of-7 passes for 32 yards.
Chris Baer looks back after scoring the go-ahead touchdown in the second quarter.
The Comanches had 70 plays from scrimmage, while Windthorst had 41.
The Shiner defense held Windthorst on the game's opening drive and following the punt took over on their 31-yard line.
Shiner drove to the Trojan 30 before losing the ball on a fumble on the 34.
Two plays later Green hit Kevin Hoff with a 66-yard pass for the score. Carlos Botello kicked the PAT and Windthorst took the lead with 4:29 left in the first period.
Chris Baer returned the kick off to the Shiner 33. Two plays later, Pustka shed a tackler at the line of scrimmage and raced 62 yards for the touchdown.
Kloesel's kick tied it with 4:06 left in the quarter.
The Trojans next drive took them to the Comanche 18. On fourth down, Botello's field goal try was short and Shiner took over on the 20 as the quarter ended.
The Comanche trio then put together an 11 play drive capped by a 3-yard touchdown run by Baer.
Wright had runs of 15 and 10 yard for first downs and then made a key first down run on the Trojan 20.
Quentin Wright gets brought down by Chad Green and Grant Moer (51).
Pustka had a 14-yard run to take the ball into Trojan territory and then set up Baer's touchdown with two carries from the 18.
Kloesel kick gave Shiner a 14-7 lead with 4:32 left in the first half.
Green's 50-yard pass to Ross Wolf was the key play in Windthorst's 74-yard drive for a score with Green taking it in from the 1-yard line to knot the game at 14-14.
With 3:46 left. Shiner had to punt and the Trojans put together a 68-yard drive, capped by a 38-yard pass to Ross Wolf for the score to take a 21-14 with 1:31 left in the half.
Two runs by Pustka and two pass completions to Wright put Shiner on the Windthorst 46.
Ross Wolf then picked off a pass intended for Wright on the 21 to stop the drive.
With just seconds left the Trojans tried to add to their lead but Wright picked off a Green pass to end the half.
Shiner came out the second half and marched 64 yards with five first downs to the Trojan 1 where Pustka scored up the middle.
The drive took 7:12 off the clock but Shiner had tied the game again at 21-21.
The Trojans were stopped on their 25 and Green's punt rolled to the Shiner 5-yard line.
Shiner was stopped and Steven Evans booted the ball 60 yards to the Windthorst 31.
Shiner High cheerleader Beth Myers tries to console Comanche lineman Colton Henley following the game last Saturday night in Waco. The Comanches lost the state matchup by a score of 28-27 to a tough Windthorst team.
The third quarter ended with the Trojans on their 44-yard line.
Two pass plays, including the 40-yard toss to Bradley Green, set up Chad Green's final and winning touchdown.
Following the punt, Shiner had their worst possession of the night. A super catch by Coleman for a 19-yard first down on the Trojan 40 and a 12-yard run by Pustka to the 25 were all for naught. A blocking penalty sent the Comanches back to the 50-yard line. A wide pitch lost another 14 yards and a third down pass was batted down.
The Comanches got new life when they recovered a Trojan fumble on the Windthorst 45 with 5:41 left in the game.
Wright carried twice for a first down. Baer picked up a first down on 3rd-and-8 and Pustka converted a 4th-and-l. Another first down on 3rd-and-5 by Baer set up Pustka's touchdown on the 3-yard line with :32 left in the game.
Kloesel's missed kick left the Comanches down by one.
The onside kick was covered by the Trojans, who then ran out the clock for the win.
Pustka led the offensive effort with 147 yards on 24 carries. Wright carried 20 times for 104 yards and Baer had 80 yards on 19 carries.
"I couldn't be prouder of our kids," said Coach Cerny. "We battled all year and win or lose, it's what you put into it. Our guys gave everything."
GAME STATISTICS Shiner Windthorst First Downs 23 15 Yards Rushing 63-331 27-103 Yards Passing 32 262 Passes 2-7-1 10-14-1 Punts 3-47 2-54.5 Fumbles-lost 2-1 1-1 Penalties-yards 2-20 2-10 Rushing - Shiner, Garet Pustka 24-147; Quentin Wright 20-104; Chris Baer 19-80. Windthorst, Kevin Hoff 6-46; Bradley Green 9-34; Chad Green 5-28; Casey Hoff 4-4; Kyle Green 1-0; Team 2-(-9). Passing - Shiner, Pustka 2-7-1 32. Windthorst, C. Green 10-14-1 262. Receiving - Shiner, Casey Coleman 1-19; Wright 1-13. Windthorst, Ross Wolf 4-125; K. Hoff 2-63; B. Green 3-58; Beau Berend 1-16. SCORING SUMMARY Shiner 7 7 7 6 -- 27 Windthorst 7 14 0 7 -- 28 SCORING DETAILS First Quarter W - Kevin Hoff 66 pass from Chad Green (Carlos Botello kick), 4:29 S - Garet Pustka 62 run (Ryan Kloesel kick), 4:06 Second Quarter S - Chris Baer 3 run (Kloesel kick), 7:28 W - C. Green 1 run (Botello kick), 5:23 W - Ross Wolf 38 pass from C. Green (Botello kick), 1:31 Third Quarter S - Pustka 1 run (Kloesel kick), 4:48 Fourth Quarter W - C. Green 1 run (Botello kick), 11:23 S - Pustka 3 run (kick failed), :32
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