SHINER - Shiner started the week by putting a loss to Refugio in the rear view mirror.
They ended it by driving right over Three Rivers.
The No. 17 Comanches (8-3) defeated Three Rivers 41-12 at home Thursday ( November 10, 2016 ) in a Class 2A, Division I bi-district playoff game. They will meet the winner of Friday's ( November 11, 2016 ) Mason vs. Moody game in the area round.
Shiner coaches had hoped there was no mental hangover after dropping a 35-0 decision to Refugio six days ago.
"I was initially worried because we were banged up and dejected since we really weren't in that game at all last Friday," said Shiner coach Steven Cerny. "I started to feel confident Monday when they showed up and went to work."
Shiner built a 28-6 halftime lead thanks to a big first half from Dadrian Taylor and several key stops defensively. Taylor ran for 126 yards and scored three touchdowns in the first half.
"Last week was supposed to be our last home game for us seniors," Taylor said. "God blessed us with one more chance, so we made the most of it and capitalized on every chance tonight."
Taylor's highlight reel included a 74-yard punt return touchdown.
"At first, I was a little skeptical because when I looked up, I saw them coming up fast," Taylor said of the Bulldog special teams players. "When I caught it, there was one man on the outside of me. I got outside of him and then there was a big alleyway."
One reason for Taylor's success was the play of the offensive line. On Taylor's 27-yard touchdown run, he patiently waited for a block downfield before turning on the jets.
"I trust my line," he said. "When they are communicating and catching blocks, it's nothing but grass ahead of me."
Three Rivers (6-5) took the opening kickoff and moved the ball to the Shiner 40. S.L. Lewis picked off a pass by Austin Black, but he lost the ball at the Bulldog 39 when he was tackled. The Bulldogs took back possession. Again they moved into Shiner territory, but the drive ended when Zach Zamzow dropped a short pass attempt on 4th and 3.
"They drove the ball early," Cerny said. "We made some adjustments defensively. Besides the one big play, I thought our defense played excellent."
The big play was a 70-yard reverse run by Three Rivers speedy running back Joel Alvarado. Shiner returned the favor in the third quarter. Ty Boedeker ran into the end zone untouched from 22 yards out after receiving a reverse handoff. That made the score 35-6.
Three Rivers ran for 260 yards in the game, but needed almost 50 carries to reach that total.
"We knew they were going to play smashmouth football," Cerny said. "We knew we had to get down low and match them and play good technique, especially when you have a lot of misdirection."
Shiner has now won a bi-district game in seven consecutive seasons. Thursday's score was tied for the closest margin of victory in those seven games. The 2011 team beat Kenedy 35-6. The rest of the bi-district wins were by more than 29 points.
Shiner now will await its area opponent. The Comanches defeated Moody 53-13 in the area round last year. Two years ago, Shiner lost to Mason 44-20 in that round.
Jeremy Shapiro is the communications manager at UHV and a sports contributor to the Victoria Advocate. Contact him at 361-570-4296 or shapiroj@uhv.edu.
GAME STATISTICSsource: https://www.victoriaadvocate.com/sports/games/results/football/three-rivers-at-shiner/6556/ Shiner 41, Three Rivers 12 November 10, 2016, 7:00 p.m. Comanche Stadium, Shiner High School SCORING SUMMARY 1 2 3 4 F Three Rivers 0 6 0 6 -- 12 Shiner 6 22 7 6 -- 41 SCORING DETAILS: First Quarter S - Brandon Cerny 19 run (kick failed), 1:52 Second Quarter S - Taylor 27 run (Taylor run), 11:00 TR - Joel Alvarado 70 run (kick failed), 9:18 S - Taylor 30 run (Cole Jalufka kick), 5:44 S - Taylor 74 punt return (Jalufka kick), 2:41 Third Quarter S - Ty Boedeker 22 run (Jalufka kick), 10:18 Fourth Quarter S - Caleb Oden 36 pass from Cerny (kick failed), 9:03 TR - Michael Retzloff 4 run (pass failed), 0:52 TEAM STATISTICS: Three Rivers Shiner First downs 12 14 Rushes-yards 48-260 27-245 Passing yards 27 54 Passes 9-3-0-1 6-2-1-1 Punts-average 0-0 0-0 Fumbles-lost 0-0 1-1 Penalties-yards 6-35 3-30 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS: Rushing TR: Austin Black 2-4, Jacob Prather 9-28, Jason Cadena 17-73, Joel Alvarado 2-58, Michael Retzloff 6-46, Zach Zamzow 12-51. S: Brandon Cerny 10-60, Charles Haynes 4-4, Dadrian Taylor 10-152, Justin Stein 2-8, Ty Boedeker 1-22. Passing TR: Austin Black 3-9-27-1 S: Brandon Cerny 2-6-54-1 Receiving TR: Michael Retzloff 1-17, Zach Zamzow 2-10. S: Caleb Oden 1-36, Dadrian Taylor 1-18.