(Edinburg,Texas)-At Richard R. Flores Stadium in Edinburg, the Edinburg Vela Sabercats (12-0) held off San Antonio Taft (9-3) 27-24 to win the University Interscholastic League 6A Division II Area Championship title. The 31-6A Sabercats will now travel to Corpus Christi, Texas to meet the 25-6A Vandegrift Vipers (11-1) at Cabaniss Field at 4:00 p.m. on Friday in the regional championships.
On Saturday, Blue-Grey All American selection, RB PJ Rivera rushed for 375 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead the Sabercats. Rivera scored on a 75-yard run with four minutes left the half to put Vela up 9-0. Kicker Job Juarez added the extra point to make it 10-0. In the third quarter, Rivera would score again from three yards out and he would add another 53-yard run to put his team up 24-10.
San Antonio Taft QB Justice Hurt connect on a 66-yard touchdown pass with WR Jamel Criswell to narrow Vela’s lead to 27-17 with seven minutes to play. On the kickoff, SA Taft failed to recover an onside kick, with the Sabercats recovering the ball. A few plays later, Taft intercepted QB Chase Campbell at the 27-yard line. Hurt would connect with Criswell again for a 15-yard TD to make it 24-27.
With less than three minutes to play, another onside kick by Taft failed and the Vela Sabercats held on to win 27-24. “We played a good game. I’m proud of our defense and our coaches,” said Vela head coach John Campbell.
The Sabercats will now turn their focus to Vandegrift High School. Both teams have met in the third round once, with the Vipers winning 49-39 in 2015. The Vipers have passed for 2,618 yards this season with 6’2 205lbs QB Brayden Buchanan. The Vipers are coming off a 38-0 win over Cibolo Steele (11-1). On the ground, the Vipers will feature 5’11 Ryan Sheppard (1,051 yards) and Alex Witt (385 yards). At WR, Reece Beauchamp, a six-foot two-inch standout has caught 44 passes for 907 yards this season. Another WR player to watch will be 6’2 Graylan Spring with 587 yards.
Defensively, the Vipers will be led by 6’3 DE Trevor Harrison, who leads the team with 13.0 quarterback sacks. As a team the Vipers have sacked their opponents 23 times this season. Two other players to watch will be 6’3 Slater Swartwood and DT 6’2 Sterling Emerson. Swartwood leads the team with 77 solo tackles and 114 total tackles while Emerson has 70 solo tackles and 110 total tackles.
The winner will meet Austin Westlake (12-0) or PSJA North (10-2) in the UIL State 6A DII Quarterfinals on December 15-18th.
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