San Marcos 20, East Central 16

Quick take: San

Marcos quarterback

Kutter Gage Webb threw a touchdown pass to Jaidyn Brown with 1:10 remaining in the fourth quarter as the Rattlers clinched a playoff and ended East Central’s postseason hopes with a 20-16 vitory.

“We didn’t know whether they would be in the playoffs or out of the playoffs, and so they rose to the occasion and took care of business,” San Marcos coach John Walsh said of his team’s mindset coming into Friday’s game.

Highlights: Rattlers running back Jake Rodriguez-Scholz had a 57-yard run to set up a 22-yard touchdown pass from Webb to Tony Diaz on the third play of the game. East Central responded with a 48-yard field goal by Daniel Gauna on their first possession. Gauna also kicked a 34-yard field goal at the end of the first half.

Webb had a 21-yard pass on a fake punt that kept a San Marcos drive alive. Webb passed to Rodriguez-Scholz, who had a one-handed catch and ran the ball 26-yards for the touchdown. The Rattlers failed on a 2-point try. East Central quarterback Austin Vivier ran for a 1-yard TD to end the third quarter.

Gauna kicked a 35-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to put the Hornets up 16-13. San Marcos got the ball with under three minutes to play, and Webb threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Brown with 1:10 remaining. Michael Garze intercepted a Hornets pass to seal the victory.

What it means: San Marcos earned a playoff spot despite a losing record. East Central is now eliminated from the playoff race after the crushing down-to-the wire loss.

Quotable: “Our kids weren’t done playing.

They were going to scratch, fight, claw, do everything they can,” Walsh said.

Game balls: Webb’s 168 passing yards helped guide the Rattlers to 317 total yards to the Hornets’ 195. Webb finished the game with three touchdowns.