Texans advance to take on North Shore.
18-6A champs advance to face North Shore in regional semis
The schools were the same. The result was similar. The path was dizzying.
A game filled with momentum swings ended with Lamar eliminating Ridge Point in the Class 6A Division I area playoffs for the second consecutive season. Two kick returns for touchdowns made the difference in the Texans’ 36-29 victory over the Panthers on Friday at Legacy Stadium.
District 18-6A champion Lamar (9-1) will face North Shore next week in the regional semifinals. District 20-6A champion Ridge Point finished 9-2.
“It was a great game between two evenly matched teams,” Texans coach Tom Nolen said. “They’ve got some great players on that team. Hats off to coach (Brett) Sniffin, his staff and his team. They played great. It’s one of those games, it’s a shame somebody’s got to lose.”
Ridge Point played well enough from scrimmage to advance, outgaining Lamar 353-159. But special teams made a major impact for Lamar.
Senior D’Shawn Jamison scored twice in the first half, including a weaving 82-yard touchdown on the opening kickoff. He added an 8-yard run late in the half for a 14-13 lead.
“We’re lethal on special teams,” Nolen said. “If we can get the ball on a kick play we’ve got a chance to do something. We got two of them tonight and just enough offense and defense to win.”
The Panthers had used two 35-yard field goals by Kyle Ramsey and a 41-yard touchdown pass from Aaron Allen to Mustapha Muhammad to take a 13-7 lead early in the second quarter. They appeared poised to take a lead into halftime after a wild series of plays.
Lamar appeared to have Ridge Point stopped after a fourth-down sack by Isaiah Ibeto, who played key roles on both sides of the ball, but penalties moved the Panthers to the Texans’ 13-yard line.
Jamison ripped the momentum back with an interception near the goal line, only to have Ridge Point’s Chad Bailey score on a 3-yard fumble return with 53 seconds remaining.
‘Big dog’ pounces
That lead lasted all of eight seconds. A short kickoff that could have been recovered by either team was grabbed on a bounce by Lamar sophomore Alex Hogan.
“It was either become a big dog or let it roll like a mouse,” Hogan said. “I’ve got to go get it. I felt like I was helping my team. I didn’t want to let my brothers down.”
Hogan sprinted 69 yards for a touchdown, and the Texans made it 22-19 on a two-point conversion pass from running back Ta’Zhawn Henry to quarterback Ty Holden.
The Panthers tied the game on the ensuing possession as receptions by John Paul Richardson and Adam Bazan set up a 40yard field goal by Ramsey, who did not miss in three attempts. But Lamar held Ridge Point to one first down on its next five possessions. The Texans regained the lead with a 40yard scoring drive, spurred by a 26-yard catch and run by Zane Knipe.
Ibeto fumbled the snap at the 4-yard line but recovered, raced around the left side and dove for the pylon to give the Texans a 29-22 lead with 1:41 left in the third quarter.
Senior linebacker Justin Fonteneaux helped Lamar get the two-score cushion it needed, returning an interception to the 1. Ibeto’s second touchdown of the quarter made it 36-22 with 9:33 remaining.
Defense adjusts
“We were upset with the way we played the first half,” Fonteneaux said. “They were just driving down the field, and that’s just uncharacteristic of Lamar defense. We made adjustments in the second half and stopped them.”
The Panthers took advantage of penalties later to cover 73 yards in six plays, capped by Mason McBride’s touchdown with 2:26 left. A first-down run by Henry took just enough time to force Ridge Point to use its remaining timeouts. The Panthers started their final drive at the 8 and, despite a 47-yard catch by Bazan, could not get inside the 30 as time expired.