Yoemen use complete performance in win over Woodville

When the Cameron Yoemen are firing on all cylinders, you are going to see solid play in pretty much every phase of the game.

On Friday night from Buddy Moorhead Stadium in Conroe, we got that type of performance.  Cameron used a balanced attack on offense to go along with a combination of big plays on special teams to push across six scores.  That, combined with a stingy, workmanlike effort on defense, has the Yoemen back in the regional semifinals following a 48-26 win over the Woodville Eagles.  

The Yoemen (10-2) jumped all over Woodville (10-2) early on in the contest, scoring 35 first half points while the defense held the ground-heavy Eagles to just two scores.   

“The offense was clicking pretty good in the first half,” said Yoemen head coach Tommy Brashear.  “We fizzled out a few times in the second half, but we made the plays when we needed to.  I was proud of ours guys.  We got some backups and JV players in there to get a little experience.  All-in-all, I’m proud of how we played tonight.”

A big reason for the success on offense was the true dual threat attack that many 3A opponents tend to struggle with.  Cameron only passed for 113 yards, but it was an effective attack with three scores coming through the air.  That included a Zack Andress to Iverson Westbrook 5-yard touchdown connection on Cameron’s opening drive.  

All-in-all, the Yoemen had eight different players rush the ball, with three accounting for at least 40 yards.  Andress was effective in reading the defense most of the night, totalling 74 yards on 10 carries.  

“You have to have the running game, too,” said Andress.  “It helps you to be able to look for the pass.  We had the running back and they had to respect both.  It helps that the line had a good push tonight and everything worked good.”

The highlight run of the night came in the fourth, with Sicory Smith taking the reverse 86 yards to give the Yoemen a 41-12 leading heading to the final quarter of play.  D.J. Fripp was the third leading rusher with 42 yards on eight carries.  

The most crucial moment of the game came late in the second quarter.  The Yoemen were up 28-12 at that point, but Woodville was driving and was down to the Yoe 10-yard line.  Yoe defensive end Noah Kostroun made sure that momentum stayed with his team, picking up a fumble at the 12 and returning it 88 yards for the defensive touchdown.

“I felt good with it and it was something I had to do for the team,” said Kostroun.  “I think it was a momentum shift and a big gamechanger.”

From that point on the defense took over, never allowing Woodville to get any closer than three touchdowns the rest of the night.

“We did a good job against the run,” said Brashear.  “A couple of big plays cost us here and there, but overall we did a good job.”

Coming into the game, the double wing offense was not something that Cameron had much experience with.  Woodville totalled 376 yards on the ground, but only crossed the goal line twice on the night, with the other score coming on 90-yard kickoff return.

“I think our defense got used to the speed of the game with what they were doing,” said Brashear.  “It’s hard to get that look in practice, especially when you're not used to running that offense.  They got some stops there in the second quarter and the third quarter.”

The win improves the Yoemen to 10-2, making it the fifth straight season with 10 or more wins. .  

“Our defense stepped up and got stops,” said Andress.  “It was going back and forth and was a battle, but when we got the lead we knew we had it.  We just kept scoring and didn’t let them come back.  We eliminated some of the mental errors, but we still have to eliminate all of them.”

Cameron will now take on Teague in the regional semifinals.  

SCORING

1st Quarter

Cameron: Zack Andress 5-yard pass to Iverson Westbrook - Luna kick - 7-0 Yoe - 7:52

Woodville: Zack Martin 61-yard run - 2pt run failed - 7-6 Yoe - 5:01

Cameron: Westbrook 60-yard kickoff return - Luna lick - 14-6 Yoe - 4:42

Woodville: Ivan Lockhart 9-yard kickoff return - 2pt run failed - 14-12 Yoe - 4:28

Cameron: Andress 11-yard pass to Jordan Young - Luna kick - 21-12 Yoe - 1:56

2nd Quarter

Cameron: Andress 38-yard pass to Sicory Smith - Luna kick - 28-12 Yoe - 6:45

Cameron: Noah Kostroun 88-yard fumble return - Luna kick - 35-12 Yoe - 2:59

3rd Quarter

Cameron: Smith 86-yard run - 2pt pass failed - 41-12 Yoe - 1:03

4th Quarter

Woodville: C.J. Wooten 3-yard run - LaDarius Kirkwood 2pt run - 41-20 Yoe - 10:52

Cameron: Nico Vargas 3-yard run - Adrian Lewis kick - 48-20 Yoe - 7:29

Woodville: Lockhart 81-yard run - 2pt pass failed - 48-26 Yoe - 2:20

STATS

Cameron

First Downs: 19

Rushing Yards: 30-263

Passing Yards: 113

Passes: 11-18-0

Punts: 2-36.5

Fumbles/Fumbles Lost: 2-2

Penalties: 14-121

INDIVIDUAL

Rushing: Zack Andress, 10-74; Sicory Smith, 1-86; D.J. Fripp, 8-42; Nico Vargas, 4-26; Anthony Layne, 1-12; Anthony Steamer, 3-12

Passing: Zach Andress, 11-18-0, 113 yards, 3 touchdowns

Receiving: Sicory Smith, 6-85; Jordan Young, 2-17; Iverson Westbrook, 3-11

Woodville

First Downs: 12

Rushing Yards: 41-376

Passing Yards: 0

Passes: 0-2-1

Punts: 2-19

Fumbles/Fumbles Lost: 4-4

Penalties: 11-78

INDIVIDUAL

Rushing: Ivan Lockhart, 16-174; Zack Martin, 8-121; Jaden Argumon, 2-20; LaDarius Kirkwood, 1-20

Passing: David Whitehead, 0-2-1, 0 yards

Receiving: N/A