Dragons’ season ends at home
D’Mon Marable dives into the endzone early in the Dragons third round playoff game against Walker Valley. (photo:Shari Wandell Bryant )
Clinton (6-7) reached the third round of the playoffs for only the second time in school history, with the 1992 state runner-up team being the only other Dragon squad to do so.
Clinton and Walker Valley met for the first time, and each team entered the contest on a four-game winning streak. The Mustangs (11-2) are the champions of Region 4-4A.
Quarterback Josh Keith finished his career for Clinton by leading the Dragon rushing attack with 11 carries for 80 yards and two touchdowns. He completed 15 of 25 passes for 97 yards, but was intercepted twice.
The Dragons posted great rushing numbers against the Mustangs, carrying the ball 32 times for 230 yards and three TDs. Jawan Goins ran six times for 74 yards, including a 60-yard TD gallop.
Chauncey Felts added six rushes for 32 yards, and D’Mon Marable six for 31. Bryson Maddox led Dragon receivers with five catches for 65 yards.
Clinton, which had curtailed its penalty totals in recent weeks, was flagged 10 times for 107 yards in the Walker Valley game. The Mustangs hurt themselves with five illegal-procedure calls.
Marable, Clinton’s leading tackler, again paced Dragon defenders with 16 total hits, a half-sack, and one forced fumble. Bo Wright made eight tackles and Jerius Hundley seven, and each broke up a pass. Derek Bean also recorded seven tackles, and Rhett Seivers added six with two tackles for loss. Felts made six tackles, with a half-tackle for loss, and Gage Wergin split the sack with Marable as part of a five-tackle effort. Jayson Graham made five tackles, Deameion Leavell four with one pass breakup, and Eric Page four with a half-TFL.
Walker Valley quarterback Evan Schwarzl had an 18-for-23 passing night against the Dragons for 271 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Also the team’s leading rusher for the season, Schwarzl carried the ball 22 times for 68 yards against Clinton. On defense, Schwarzl made a game-saving interception with 24.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Receiver Hudson Makuch led the Mustangs with eight catches for 154 yards and two TDs.
Clinton bolted out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. The Dragons opened the game with a 12-play, 75-yard drive for a touchdown. Marable ran 16 yards for one first down, and Felts moved the sticks twice with carries of 7 and 10 yards. Keith scrambled 13 yards to set up first-and-goal at the Mustang 3-yard line, and the Dragon quarterback ran a sneak up the middle on the next play for a score. Clinton went for two afterward, and Marable caught a pitch from Leavell to give the Dragons an 8-0 lead with 6:21 left in the opening period.
Walker Valley drove from its own 31 to the Dragon 14, with the big play being a 41-yard pass from Schwarzl to Zeke Garrison, but Eli Wilson missed a 31-yard field goal wide right.
The Dragons answered in a hurry, with Keith hitting Maddox for a 21-yard pass to the Clinton 40 on third down. Goins followed with a left-to-right move through the Mustang defense and then broke free down the left sideline for a 60-yard TD run. A two-point run failed, but Clinton led 14-0 with 1:14 remaining in the first quarter.
Wergin and Hundley made a big stop on Schwarzl on the final play of the period, but Schwarzl—under a heavy rush from Felts—completed an 18-yard pass to Makuch on third-and-13 and then hit Makuch for a 45-yard TD pass two plays later. Wilson’s extra point cut the Dragon lead to 14-7 with 10:45 left in the half.
Clinton then held the ball more than seven minutes before an interception ended the drive. Goins ran for 11 yards and Hundley for 12, with Maddox catching an 11-yard pass along the way. Keith ran for 12 yards to the Mustang 34 but threw an interception to Isaac Sausville, who made a diving grab, on the next play.
Schwarz ran for 20 yards and the Dragons committed a pass-interference foul on the next Mustang drive. Wergin and Marable, however, would sack Schwarzl for an 8-yard loss after Walker Valley had advanced to the Dragon 7. Two plays later, Marable tackled Schwarzl for no gain as time expired in the half.
Marable made a big hit on kickoff return man Makuch to open the third quarter, but both teams then traded punts.
Walker Valley drove from its own 49 to the Dragon 2 before settling for a 19-yard Wilson field goal. The kick cut Clinton’s lead to 14-10 with 1:11 to go in the third.
The Dragons turned the ball over on downs as the fourth quarter opened, and Walker Valley would soon take the lead for keeps with an 83-yard drive in four plays. Schwarzl connected with Makuch, who was open over the middle at the Dragon 20, on a 52-yard TD pass. Wilson’s point-after gave the Mustangs a 17-14 lead with 8:57 remaining.
Clinton fumbled twice on one play on its next drive, with Ashton Owens recovering for the Mustangs at the Dragon 20. The visitors scored six plays later as Schwarzl—nearly getting sacked on the play—connected with Spencer Makuch on an 11-yard scoring pass. Wilson’s kick put the Mustangs up 24-14 with 3:47 to go.
Leavell returned the kickoff 19 yards, and Maddox caught a 13-yard Keith pass to start the Dragons’ next drive. Braylon Taylor had a 15-yard catch and Keith a 19-yard run for the Dragons. Keith capped the drive with a 9-yard TD run. The Dragons’ two-point pass failed, but they had cut their deficit to 24-20 with exactly one minute left.
Bean recovered an onside kick to give the Dragons hope, but Keith was intercepted by Schwarzl on a bomb at the Mustang 2-yard line. The visitors ran out the clock in three plays after that.