TULIA, TX-- Back-to-back interception returns for touchdowns in the third quarter were the eventual knockout punches to Garden City’s season Monday night against no. 1 McLean in the State Semifinals.
"It was a great season. I am happy for these guys," head coach Jeff Jones said emotionally. "I mean, 13-1 ... We wanted to be in AT&T [Stadium], we really did. But to go 13-1 with them was fun. It was a blast. I'm gonna miss these seniors."
McLean proved why they are the no. 1 team in the state with a 72-34 win over the Bearkats at Younger Field in Tulia.
The two teams began the game with a flurry of punches.
On the second play from scrimmage, McLean’s Ben Crockett went 51 yards to open the scoring and put the Tigers up 8-0 after the extra point.
That sparked an incredible performance by the junior. Crockett would finish the game with 271 yards rushing, two interceptions and seven total touchdowns.
Amando Alegria would tie the game up on the next play from scrimmage. McLean responded with 16 unanswered points on a 41-yard run by Crockett and a 6-yard touchdown pass from Crockett to Kater Tate to go up 24-8 in the second quarter.
Cesar Chavez found Trae Jost for a 13-yard touchdown pass to cut that deficit in half. Crockett then found Chism Henderson for a 6-yard touchdown pass to make the halftime score 32-16.
After halftime, Crockett stepped up his defensive game with one of those two interception returns for touchdowns to extend the lead to 38-16. Bradley Hannon intercepted the Bearkats on the next drive and took that one back to make it 46-16. Garden City allowed a total of four turnovers in the game.
"You wanna say you have to play a perfect game, but there's no perfect game when you play the number one team in the state," Jones said. "The ball bounces funny sometimes. But we gave it our shot."
A 19-yard touchdown run by Hunter McMillan on the next drive got the pulse back for the Bearkats. An interception return by Almazan brought them completely back to life and made it 46-28.
Cirildo Mier then capped off the scoring run with a 28-yard touchdown run to bring Garden City within 46-34 in the third.
Garden City was shut out in the fourth quarter while McLean rattled off 26 unanswered points to close out the game.
"We knew we could play with [McLean]," Jones added. "We're not scared of anybody. We're not intimidated by anybody. We knew they were the real deal. They've been putting points on people all year long. We made it to the fourth quarter and we gave it our best shot."
Garden City finishes the year 13-1. McLean will face Milford for the Class 1A Division I state championship on Dec. 19.
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