AUSTIN — Bastrop threw Connally’s pass defense into submission.
Taking advantage of the Cougar’s loose coverage, Josiah Monroe threw three touchdown passes and had 364 yards to lift the Bears to a 42-27 win at Cougar Stadium.
Monroe finally found his go-to guy, as senior Buddy Nunn proved to be the biggest Cougar Killer of them all with 11 catches, 265 yards and two touchdowns.
“We knew they were going to play loose coverage against us, so we wanted to take advantage of that,” said Bastrop head coach Gerald Perry. “(Buddy) is hard to bring down.”
Connally (7-1, 3-1) jumped out to an early 13-0 lead after a Bastrop fumble and a failed fourth-down conversion by the Bears.
The Bears (6-2, 3-1), however, quickly capitalized on one of three Cougar turnovers as Monroe set up a 1-yard touchdon run by Trae Bunton with a 23-yard toss to Nunn.
Bastrop’s defense forced Connally to punt and Marcus Reed scored the first of 21 points in the second quarter with a 2-yard touchdown run.
Despite Bastrop’s running game taking center stage early on, Monroe opened up his aresnal.
The senior quarterback found Bubby McDonald and Nunn for touchdown passes of seven and 41 yards as the Bears took a 28-19 lead into the locker room.
Bastrop capitalized on Connally’s second fumble early in the third quarter as Bunton scored his second touchdown, bolting down field from the Bastrop 24-yard line for the 76-yard touchdown. Bunton’s score extended the Bears’ lead to 16 points heading into the final quarter.
Connally tried its best to stay in the game, as Devon Lewis scored from the 4-yard-line, but Monroe and Nunn took three plays to connect again, putting the final nail in the coffin with a 69-yard touchdown.
“We are starting to peak at the right time and that’s what we wanted to do,” Perry said.
With the win, Bastrop now takes over control of District 16-4A and takes on Elgin Thursday at BISD Memorial Stadium.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game will be televised by KBVO-TV on Time Warner Cable.

Bastrop 42, Connally 27
Bastrop (5-2, 2-1)    7    21    7    7    -    42
Connally (7-0, 3-0)    13    6    0    8    -    27

First quarter
C: Devon Lewis 25 run (run failed)
C: Dae Peyton 3 run (Daniel Portillo kick)
B: Trae Bunton 1 run (Hart McMillan kick)
Second quarter
B: Marcus Reed 3 run (McMillan kick)
C: Kenneth Defee 8 run (pass failed)
B: Bubby McDonald 7 pass from Josiah Monroe (McMillan kick)
B: Buddy Nunn 41 pass from Monroe (McMillan kick)
Third quarter
B: Bunton 76 run (McMillan kick)
Fourth quarter
C: Lewis 4 run (Defee run)
B: Nunn 67 pass from Monroe (McMillan kick)

Team statistics
B    C
First downs    23    20
Rushes-yards    30-192    39-280
Passing yards    364    143
C-A-I    21-37-2    8-21-1
Fumbles-lost1-1    2-2
Punts-avg    1-53    2-28.5
Penalties-yards    4-30    6-50

Individual statistics
Rushing
C: Devon Lewis 10-75, Dae Payton 5-24, Kenneth Defee 23-177, Sevin Jefferson 1-4. B: Trae Bunton 6-105, Josiah Monroe 9-24, Mark Jackson 6-21, Marcus Reed 8-17, D.J. Gaines 1-2.
Passing
C: Lewis 8-21-1 143 yards. B: Monroe 21-37-2 364 yards.
Receiving
C: Adnrew Hellriegel 4-94, Defee 4-49. B: Buddy Nunn 11-265, Mason Foytik 4-36, Trae Bunton 3-20, Bubby McDonald 4-28.