The Bastrop Advertiser » Bastrop

Football: They’re back!

Michael Adams — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:38:36 +0000

CEDAR CREEK — After dismantling the Seguin defense, Bastrop quarterback Josiah Monroe simply said, “We’re back.”
Monroe played one of the best games of his career Thursday night as his 417 yards of offense and six total touchdowns lifted Bastrop to a 51-31 win over Seguin at BISD Memorial Stadium.
“Last week we weren’t ready,” Monroe said. “We weren’t prepared (for McNeil). This week we got back to work and it paid off as you can see.”
It looked like it was going to be another long night for Bastrop when Seguin’s Kari Miller caught a 73-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the game.
That was the last the fans heard of Seguin’s offense for a while as Monroe and the Bears got to work rebounding from last week’s 22-20 loss to McNeil.
Monroe led Bastrop on a 70-yard drive that culminated with a 24-yard touchdown pass to D.J. Gains with 8:26 left in the first quarter.
After Bastrop’s defense held the Matadors (1-1) to a quick three-and-out, Monroe struck again with a 39-yard touchdown toss to Trae Bunton to put the Bears (1-1) ahead 14-7 going into the second quarter.
Monroe attacked again late in the second when the Bears capitalized on a Seguin fumble.
From his own 33-yard-line, the senior connected with Buddy Nunn for a 67-yard touchdown with 4:53 left in the half.
Down 21-7, the Matadors finally struck back when Brig Gerlich ran in a 6-yard touchdown with 3:33.
Hart McMillan sent Bastrop into the locker room with a 24-7 lead by booting his first career field goal with the Bears, a 20-yarder as time expired.
“(Josiah) did a great job of going through his reads,” said head coach Gerald Perry. “They gave us a lot of loose coverage and our slots made a couple of big plays. Based on their defensive line, (Seguin) gave us a lot of things that played into our hands.”
Monroe had 208 of his 325 passing yards in the first half, completing 9-of-17 attempts.
And his day wasn’t even close to being over.
Monroe was perfect in the second half, completing all six of his pass attempts.
Before he could throw his fourth and fifth touchdown passes, he ran one in for 59 yards on Bastrop’s first possession of the second half.
Gerlich tried to keep the Matadors close with a 2-yard touchdown run, but Monroe kept making it look easy as he connected with Mason Foytik and Trae Bunton for touchdown passes of 29 and 12 yards, respectively.
“I knew we were going to come out an play,” Perry said. “We still have a lot of young guys on defense and early on we were missing tackles and had some busted coverage, but it’s good to win and learn.”
Monroe finished the game completing 14-of-23 passing attempts for 325 yards and had five passing touchdowns to go with 92 rushing yards on eight carries with one touchdown on the ground.
Six Bastrop receivers finished with 30-or-more reveiving yards with Nunn leading the way with 67 yards on one catch.
Bastrop will host former District 25-5A rival Akins on Friday.

Bastrop 51, Seguin 21
Seguin 7 7 7 0 - 21
Bastrop 14 10 21 7 - 51

First quarter
S: Kharl Miller 73 pass from Brig Gerlich (Israel Rodriguez kick) -11:53
B: D.J. Gaines 24 pass from Josiah Monroe (Hart McMillan kick) – 8:26
B: Trae Bunton 39 pass from Monroe (McMillan kick) – 6:09

Second quarter
B: Buddy Nunn 67 pass from Monroe (McMillan kick) – 4:53
S: Gerlich 6 run (Rodriguez kick) – 3:33
B: McMillan 20 FG (:00)

Third quarter
B: Monroe 59 run (McMillan kick) – 10:07
S: Gerlich 2 run (Rodriguez kick) – 6:35
B: Mason Foytik 29 pass from Monroe (pass failed) – 4:48
B: Trae Bunton 12 pass from Monroe (McMillan kick) – 1:23

Fourth quarter
B: Mark Jackson 2 run (McMillan kick) – 9:58

B   S
First downs       22   16
Rushes-yards   30-181   33-109
Passing yards   325   174
C-A-I   14-24-0   7-14-0
Fumbles-lost   1-0   2-1
Punts-Avg.    3-34   4-27.3
Penalties-yards   8-60   4-30

Rushing
B: Josiah Monroe 8-92; Mark Jackson 10-44; Marcus Reed 8-33; Josh Taylor 1-8; Trae Bunton 2-6. S: Brig Gerlich 6-43; Dequan Hedspeth 15-30; Khari Miller 1-16; Ray Hunter 3-12.

Passing
B: Monroe 14-23-0 325 yds,; Dillon Becker 0-1-0 0 yds. S: Gerlich 7-13-0 174 yds.; Ricky Reeves 0-1-0 0 yds.

Receiving
B: Buddy Nunn 1-67; Bunton 4-63; D.J. Gaines 3-48; Josh Taylor 3-80; Jackson 1-33; Mason Foytik 2-33. S: Miller 2-122; Hedspeth 2-7; Ty Miles 1-17; Reeves 1-10; Ray Hunter 1-18.

The Bear Cave: Bastrop’s Achilles heel

Michael Adams — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 20:15:00 +0000

Bastrop’s Achilles heel was exposed again on Friday — the Bears cannot stop big running backs.
It’s kind of like that nagging injury that won’t go away.
The Bears run defense was again suspect, especially in the second half, against McNeil at Kelly Reeves Stadium in Round Rock.
The Mavericks had 92 rushing yards in the first half on 27 carries, which comes to 3.4 yards per carry.
In the second half, McNeil called running plays on 26 of 29 downs, ran for 144 yards and averaged 5.5 yards per carry.
To be fair, unlike losses to Bowie and New Braunfels in 2009, one or two running backs didn’t do it on their own.
The Mavericks did it all by committee.
Cooper Lewis rushed for 86 yards. Tracy Mitchell ran for 80 yards and Daniel Williams, brother of Aaron Williams, ran for 52 yards.
Between the three of them, Lewis had two touchdowns and Mitchell scored one. All on the ground.
Go back to the end of the 2009 season and you will see Bastrop’s run defense has always struggled against good running teams.
Bowie’s Brelyn Sorrells ran for 225 yards on 26 carries by himself.
It was part of a 368-yard day on the ground in the Bulldog’s 34-14 win over Bastrop.
The following week, New Braunfels had a more balanced offense, but ran for 233 yards against Bastrop as a team.
Running back Jeremy Garcia averaged 8.1 YPC, rushing for 138 yards on 17 attempts.
Look at the wins against Westlake, Connally, Pflugerville and Akins.
Those teams had just 169, 70, 234 and 83 yards respectively on the ground.
Westlake balanced their offense out and threw for 180 yards.
And I know what you are saying, “Pflugerville ran for 234 yards and Bastrop beat them 41-26.”
The Panthers did have two turnovers and gave up a defensive touchdown in a 28-point second quarter by the Bears. However, Pflugerville did outscore Bastrop 26-10 in the second half.

Running troubles
Bastrop head coach Gerald Perry said on Monday, the game plan for McNeil was to establish the run.
And the Bears did just that, calling running plays on 10 of 18 downs.
Bastrop wasn’t as successful running the ball as they were throwing it.
The Bears ran the ball 22 times and averaged 3.87 yards per carry with their longest rush being just 12 yards. Only four of those plays went over 10 yards.
Bastrop was much more successful through the air, tallying 197 yards on 26 attempts, averaging 7.6 yards per reception.
The Bears passing offense scored three times and had 12 plays go for more than 10 yards, with four going for more than 20.

A tale of two halfs
In the first half, Bastrop was able to move the football with ease.
The Bears out-gained McNeil 191-92 in offense.
The Mavericks defense did a 360-degree turnaround and held Bastrop to three-and-out on four of six possessions in the second half.
The Bears’ longest offensive play was just 25-yards, which came on a touchdown pass to Josh Taylor in the final minute of the game.
Before that play, the longest was just 10 yards on a run by Josiah Monroe.

Injury report
Bastrop is healthy after Friday’s game.
Perry said there were no injuries that would keep anyone out of Thursday’s game with Seguin.

STOPPING THE RUN
In Bastrop’s last three games, teams have averaged 269.6 yards rushing against the Bears defense. In each of those games, Bastrop suffered a loss. Here is a breakdown:

Player, school ATT YDS TDS RESULT
McNeil 41 218 3 L, 20-22
Leading rusher: Cooper Lewis (18-86 yards , 2 TDS)

New Braunfels 29 182 3 L, 42-21
Leading rusher: Jeremy Garcia (17-136 yards, TD)

Bowie 36 368 4 L, 34-14
Leading rusher: Breyln Sorrells (24-225 yards, TD)

Football: Bastrop-Seguin Preview

Michael Adams — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 20:10:26 +0000

Bastrop head coach Gerald Perry said a shortened week is welcomed after the Bears 22-20 loss to McNeil.
“We want to play,” he said. “Kids know what happen and they feel like they have something to prove now.”
The Bears (0-1) will face former La Grange coach Wes Walker and Seguin tonight at BISD Memorial Stadium.
The game is televised on KBVO-TV (Time Warner Cable channel 1521) and will kickoff at 7 p.m.
Seguin defeated Uvalde 35-20 Saturday at The Alamodome in San Antonio in Walker’s first game as the Matadors head coach.
Perry said his team understands the mistakes they made and will be a much different team this week.
“It falls back on me not getting the kids ready to play,” Perry said. “We will play a much better game this week. The kids understand that you have to play for four quarters.”
Bastrop led 13-3 at halftime, but came out flat in the second half as McNeil took a 22-13 in the fourth quarter.
“What worked in the first half wasn’t working in the second,” Perry said. “We were mentally shaken, but we got that corrected.”
Perry said Seguin had a couple of athletic defensive ends and plays aggressive defense, but felt the Matadors don’t match with Bastrop’s team speed.

SEGUIN AT BASTROP
7 p.m., Thursday at BISD Memorial Stadium

TV: KBVO-TV (Time Warner Cable, Channel 1521)
Records: Seguin is 1-0; Bastrop is 0-1
Last Week: Seguin def. Uvalde 35-20; McNeil def. Bastrop 22-20
Last meeting: Seguin 29, Bastrop 23 in 2007
Prediction: Bastrop by 10

GOLF: Bastrop golfer qualifies for LPGA Pro-Am in The Woodlands

Special to the Advertiser — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 19:52:36 +0000

Bastrop senior Adriana Trevino placed fifth overall among 24 players at the Southern Texas PGA junior tour championship at Cypress Woods Country Club in Houston in August.
Trevino shot a two-round total 160, with a 75 on the second day, rebounding from a first round score of 85.
She will play in the LPGA Pro-Am at The Woodlands in October.

Football: McNeil 22, Bastrop 20 w/box score

Michael Adams — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 17:57:32 +0000

ROUND ROCK – Cooper Lewis ran for 55 yards and scored two touchdowns in the second half as the McNeil Mavericks defeated Bastrop 22-20 Friday at the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex in Round Rock.
Lewis tallied 86 yards rushing as McNeil (1-0) ran for 144 yards in the second half on the Bears’ defense, but only had 92 at halftime.
Bastrop had no trouble moving the ball in the first half as Josiah Monroe threw two of his three touchdown passes early to give Bastrop a 13-3 lead at halftime.
It was a much different story as Cameron Smith and the Mavericks’ defense kept Bastrop’s offense off the field for most of the half.
The Bears (0-1) had just two of six possessions where they didn’t go three-and-out.
Monroe, who had 244 yards of offense, had 136 passing yards in the first half.
His first touchdown was to Buddy Nunn, a 25-yard toss to the back of the endzone.
His second came early in the second quarter when he hit D.J. Gains for an 11-yard score to give Bastrop a 13-0 lead with nine minutes in the first half.
McNeil finally got on the scoreboard with 14 seconds left in the half when Chase Naylor connected on a 35-yard field goal.

McNeil 22, Bastrop 20
Bastrop (0-1) 7 6 0 7 - 20
McNeil (1-0) 0 3 12 7 - 22

First quarter
B: Buddy Nunn 25 pass from Josiah Monroe (Hart McMillan kick) – 1:30
Second quarter
B: D.J. Gaines 11 pass from Monroe (kick failed) – 9:34
M: Chase Naylor 35 field goal – :14
Third quarter
M: Cooper Lewis 15 run (kick failed) – 6:41
M: Lewis 1 run (run failed) – 2:26
Fourth quarter
M: Tracy Mitchell 7 run (Naylor kick) – 2:47
B: Taylor 25 pass from Monroe (McMillan kick) – :20

Team statistics        B    M
First downs    15    15
Rushes-yards    22-85    52-236
Passing yards    197    14
C-A-I        13-26-0    2-6-0
Punts-average    5-34.8    7-35.9
Fumbles-lost    1-1    1-0
Penalties-yards    4-36    4-30

Individual statistics
Rushing: B: Josiah Monroe 8-47, Marcus Reed 6-12, Mark Jackson 6-23. M: Cooper Lewis 18-86, Tracy Mitchell 9-80, Daniel Williams 14-52
Passing: B: Monroe 13-26-0 197. M: Josh Williams 2-6-0 14
Receiving: B: Josh Taylor 3-77, Mason Foytik 3-60, Buddy Nunn 1-25, D.J. Gaines 2-15. M: Lewis 2-14

Contributed photos by Larry Overall/ Bastrop Bears wide receiver Robert Nunn nabs a touchdown pass Friday night at Kelly Reeves Stadium in Round Rock.

Football: Hicks makes Bears defense much stronger

Michael Adams — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 17:02:25 +0000

Fans will quickly notice a difference in Bastrop’s defense this season.
In 2009, en route to a district championship, the Bears were fast with a deep secondary that averaged two takeaways-per-game.
Bastrop will still have that same speed, if not more of it.
The difference will be in the strength and size of their defense.
“Whether it was just a stroke of luck or our kids peeking at the right time, we are bigger this year than we were last season,” said defensive coordinator Todd Patmon. “I think we fit in this district (16-4A) better than the district we were in last year. Our linebackers are bigger and our defensive line is bigger. If we can be mentally tough, we will match up good with teams in this district.”
A player offensive coordinators from around District 16-4A will need to account for when they match up against Bastrop is linebacker Allah Hicks.
Hicks is a monster with his size and strength.
Standing 6-foot-1, weighing 225 pounds, Hicks is a wall in the second line of defense for the Bears.
His strength makes him dangerous.
His speed makes him near unstoppable.
And with running backs like Hendrickson’s Kenny Williams and Elgin’s Da’Rick Nolan, Bastrop needs a linebacker like Hicks.
The senior said despite the past troubles Bastrop’s defense has had against running backs like Williams, the Bears will be able to stop them.
“I am really confident about our defense this year,” Hicks said. “We picked up right where we left off in the spring. I busted my tail in the summer to get faster, so I think as long as we communicate and hold our gaps, we will be OK.”
Patmon said a kid like Hicks has the chance to be a special player.
“He works hard every day and he likes the challenge of trying to lead the defense,” Patmon said. “He has the chance to be a special player.
“I think the way we are going to use him, however, may not allow him to get the stats he needs to get a lot of post-season awards, but he definitely has the ability and chance to be the defensive MVP.”
For a defense that was down right stingy last year, allowing 22.4 points per game, Hicks said Bastrop will have to be the same stingy defense to repeat as district champions.

Staff photo by Michael Adams/ Don’t let his contagious smile fool you. Bastrop linebacker Allah Hicks is not as nice as he looks on the football field.

Football: Bears begin district title defense against McNeil

Michael Adams — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 20:08:39 +0000

Bastrop will enter its game Friday at the Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex as heavy favorites against the McNeil Mavericks.
The Bears will be looking back into the past and catch a glimpse of where they were two years ago, according to head coach Gerald Perry.
“They have some good looking and athletic kids, but they are a team in transition,” Perry said. “Watching them in their scrimmage against Westlake, they made mistakes, but that happens when you have a new coach.”
Bastrop will have to account for talented defensive end Cameron Smith, but Perry said they are ready for him.
“(Our offensive line) have been playing good defensive linemen all along,” Perry said. “For what we do, we read the defensive ends anyway.”
The Bears enter the new season as defending district champions, but do so in a new district.
Perry said that with the expectations and hype, his team is staying humble.
“They’ve never had high expectations here, so I think our kids are pretty grounded,” he said. “We have a chance to be a good team this year, but the question is, ‘how good do we want to be?”

BASTROP AT MCNEIL • 7 P.M., FRIDAY • KELLY REEVES ATHLETIC COMPLEX • PREDICTION: BEARS BY 18

Lake Travis View photo by Max Thompson/ Bastrop defensive back Mustafa Akbar, left, tries to block a pass intended for Lake Travis’ Griffin Gilbert (7) Friday during a scrimmage at Lake Travis.

Football: 5 questions facing the Bears

Michael Adams — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:11:05 +0000

1 Will Bastrop be able to look past the hype and repeat 2009?
Bastrop is entering the 2010 season with a lot of anticipation, expectations and, yes, hype.
There will be pundits that feel Bastrop is overrated and expect the Bears to prove them wrong. Either way, Bastrop is one of the most talked about teams entering the 2010 season around Central Texas.
Pressure to win is something this group of players hasn’t felt before, as expectations were never really high around these parts before this season.
With all the rankings and hosting one of the Top 200 players in Texas, Bastrop is now the team with the expectation to win.
The question is, will Bastrop be able to live up to that expectation?
Bottom line: There is the talent to do so.
2 Will Bastrop be able to stop the run and Kenny Williams ?
This is always an interesting discussion around the coach’s offices, but a legitimate question.
In Bastrop’s two losses in 2009, their opponents combined for 601 rushing yards and Brelyn Sorrells (Bowie) rushed for 225 of those yards in the Bulldogs 20-point victory over Bastrop.
Both Bowie and New Braunfels defeated Bastrop by 20 points.
Anderson, who came close to upsetting the Bears, rushed for 317 yards.
In all fairness, the Bears’ defense only allowed 158.7 yards per game on the ground.
However, in games up against a good running back, Bastrop’s had a record of 2-2 and posted a margin of victory of only three points.
The 158.7 yards rushing allowed per game is an improvement from 2008, where the Bears gave up 275.2 yards per game on the ground.
Bottom line: Hendrickson’s Kenny Williams isn’t just going to let Bastrop hit him in the backfield.
Neither will Elgin’s Da’Rick Nolan for that matter.

3 Who will step up as the go-to wide receiver for the Bears?
Take your pick. The speed of Josh Taylor or the hands and athleticism of Buddy Nunn.
All signs point to Nunn right now, but Taylor is a big play wide out that is just as capable.
Don’t overlook Mason Foytik either. He has just as much potential to be that go-to guy.
This is probably the one position where the Bears won’t have to worry about depth.
There is a lot of height and speed at the wide receiver position, so expect Bastrop’s wide receivers to produce a lot of numbers.
Depth at this position will be important as teams will try to keep the slippery Josiah Monroe from running as much as he did in 2009.

4 Will the secondary be OK without its two all-state DBs?
Simple answer to a not-so-simple question: Yes.
While the idea of losing two all-state defensive backs would seem like cause for alarm, such is not the case for the Bears.
Justin Froncek and Mustafa Akbar will add the speed lost by Blake and Rodriguez.
Teams thinking they will be finally able to throw the football against the Bears might want to re-think that decision.
The Bears are going to be just as stingy in the secondary as always under defensive coordinator Todd Patmon’s guidance.

5 Who will replace Lee McMillan at the kicker position?
Bastrop was blessed with one of the best kickers in District 25-5A in 2009.
Lee McMillan made 11-of-12 field goal attempts with a season long of 47 yards.
McMillan had key roles in several of Bastrop’s wins, so to think the kicker position isn’t a concern would be naive.
Lee’s younger brother, Hart McMillan, is one of the possibilities to take over kicking duties.

Football: Bears open 2010 camp today

Michael Adams — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 14:50:46 +0000

When the Bastrop Bears hit the field for the first practice later today, there will be a new element they haven’t seen in a while — hype.
The Class 4A No. 15 Bears are coming off a season in which they won a share of the District 25-5A title when most pundits picked them to finish next-to-last.
Unable to sneak up on opponents, head coach Gerald Perry and his staff have a new part of the game to teach.
“It’s always good to have pressure,” Perry said. “I love that kind of pressure on me to be successful and the kids need to learn how to deal with that.
“Last year, we were overlooked and were the ones circling games on our schedule. Now, we are penciled in on other people’s schedules. We aren’t going to sneak up on people like we did last year.”
Perry will have to work double duty as dad and coach when two-a-days start on Monday.
Perry and his wife welcomed their third child on July 19.
Their oldest son, Tristan, was also a “football baby,” so Perry said he has the system down.
“I am used to staying up until 1 a.m. or 2 a.m. anyway working, so changing a diaper or two here and there isn’t that big of a deal,” he said. “My wife and I have a system down. I get night duty the first part of the week and she gets it the last part.”
Things are different for the Bears than in the two previous years for Bastrop.
For the first time in Perry’s tenure, the Bears are picked to win District 16-4A.
The Bears enter the season with a state ranking by TexasHSFootball.com.
And, Bastrop hosts one of the top 200 seniors in the state.
With excitement surrounding Bastrop football, Perry said he feels his team has built a culture of winning and that is now the expectation.
“We expect to win championships from here on out,” he said. “We had a good spring and each year there has been a little more excitement starting out.
“The kids are ready to go, but we will see what happens when the season starts up.”
Practice begins 6 p.m. at the practice field behind Erhard Stadium on the Bastrop High School campus.
All practices are open to the public and Perry said he encourages the community to come out and watch practices.

File photo/ Bastrop quarterback Josiah Monroe works on passing drills during spring practice in May. Monroe and the Bears open fall practice Monday.

Volleyball: It’s the year of the setter in Bastrop County

Michael Adams — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 14:42:12 +0000

If 2009 was the year of the outside hitter around Bastrop County, 2010 looks to be the year of the setter.
Bastrop’s Rachel Clardy leads a talented group of setters in Bastrop County, which also includes Elgin’s Kelsey Markham and Smithville’s Colline Morrell.
Clardy said that the trick to being successful at the setter position is being able to adjust to the game.
“You have to focus on your hitters because each one is different and they like different sets,” she said. “You also have to know the other side of the court and know what your hitters are up against and who they are matched up against.”
Clardy and Bastrop head coach Christy Donaldson said they felt the position was like a quarterback in football because the setter is the one position that has to control the court.
“There is a lot to keep up with,” Clardy said. “You constantly have to be thinking and that’s difficult because you’re making quick decisions.”
Donaldson added, “It is one of the most important things to have a good setter. I was lucky when I got here to have a setter like Rachel, who already knew how to push the ball and read her hitters.”
Clardy was the best overall setter last season, finishing with 854 assists, averaging 8.5 per set.
She finished just ahead of Markham, who is entering her fourth season with the Lady Cats’ varsity team.
Markham finished with 907 assists, but averaged 8.0 assists per set.
Elgin head coach Hollie Smith-Huston, who like Donaldson, is entering her third year with her setter said that Markham’s experience and playing the setter position makes her one of the most important players on the court.
“The setter touches the ball every time,” Smith-Huston said. “(Kelsey) is extremely athletic and has just a natural touch to her sets. She fits the mold of what I look for in a setter. If our passers are not successful, the setters must make them successful and that’s what Kelsey does.”
Smith-Huston said that when she looks for a setter, she looks for ones that have quick feet, athleticism and a competitive nature.
“We have freshmen coming in that have never played setter before, but they fit that mold of what makes a good setter,” she said. “One of the most important traits of a setter is that they cannot be passive.”
Clardy said that chemistry is very important and she feels that the chemistry she has with other Bastrop players will be beneficial for the Lady Bears.
“Hillari (Raemsch), Raven (Barnett) and I have been working together for a few years now so they know how to talk to me and let me know how close they are or where they are going to be,” she said. “I think the setter is one of the most important positions on the court, but you couldn’t do it without your passers. Without a pass, you can’t set. Without your hitters, you can’t get a point. It’s definitely one of the most important because (the setter) is the middle man.”

File photo/ Bastrop setter Rachel Clardy leads a trio of talented setters around Bastrop County into the 2010 volleyball season.