Yoe has successful day at Mclennan County SQT

Success in 7-on-7 can be measured in a variety of ways. For the Cameron Yoemen, it’s simply all about progression and continuing to improve each time out on the field. You could say that was accomplished this past Saturday, as Cameron went 2-1 in pool play with wins over China Spring and First Baptist Academy in addition to a last second loss to Groesbeck.

“It was a good day overall,” said Yoe football coach Tommy Brashear. “It was the best we have looked in all phases, offensively and defensively. We are getting better and that is what we’re doing this for.”

Cameron began the day with what appeared to be their toughest matchup in China Spring. However, the Yoe defense was up to the task, posting a shutout in the 20-0 victory.

7-on-7 is a game known for more offense than defense, but that was not the case here. Both teams began the game with back-to-back thee and outs, followed by a James Debose interception for Cameron. On China Spring’s next possession, Billy Collier intercepted a pass to give his team one more shot before the half.

The Yoemen broke the ice as James DeBose caught a 10-yard pass from Anthony Layne in the end zone. Kobe Young hauled in the extra point to put his team up at the half, 7-0.

To open the second half, China Spring appeared poised to score with the ball sitting at the one-yard line. DeBose had other plans, jumping a route and taking the ball the other way 44 yards for a defensive score. Kirk Lara and Kadrian Hammond both intercepted passes before Iverson Braziel caught a pass from Braden Brashear in the corner of the end zone to ice the game at 20-0.

Cameron was up 26-14 on Groesbeck in game two after Thomas Melton and Collier caught touchdown passes. The Goats made the improbable comeback with just seven minutes on the game clock, scoring twice while holding the Yoemen scoreless to escape with a 27-26 win.

In the finale with First Baptist, The Yoemen jumped out to a 26-0 halftime lead and cruised to a 45-0 final. Two Lara interceptions for touchdowns to go along with two scores from Jale Walzel and three from Thomas Melton capped off the scoring.

Groesbeck did fall to China Spring in their finale, so the three teams were tied for first in the pool at 2-1. Groesbeck advanced out of the pool due to points scored between the three teams. The Goats fell in the semifinals to Midlothian Heritage, blowing a 21-point second half lead. Midlothian Heritage and Lorena qualified for the state tournament.

Brashear was still pleased with the results and what he saw on the field, including from all three (Layne, Brashear, Lara) quarterbacks.

“We had a lot of guys missing today, but I thought kids competed well and played hard all day. We got a lot of good out of this. The quarterbacks looked a little better overall today. We have been throwing a lot of interceptions in league and have been forcing the ball. Sometimes that is the receivers fault, but we are cleaning things up.”

Gatesville SQT

The Yoemen will be right back at it this weekend at the Gatesville SQT. This tournament will also be of the four-pool variety, meaning that the Yoemen must win their pool and their semifinal game in order to qualify for the state tournament later this summer.

Cameron is going to be positioned in pool C, which contains Brownwood, Mineral Wells and Little River Academy. The pool appears to be tough as Brownwood has qualified for the state tournament the last 10 years while Mineral Wells has earned a bid the past two seasons.

The Lions were the team that beat Cameron in the division two championship game the summer of 2010.

Pool play will begin at 9:00 am.

Pool A (Lorena): Lorena*, Groesbeck, Glen Rose, La Vega

Pool B (China Spring): China Spring, Connally, Hillsboro, Stephenville

Pool C (Gatesville HS): Brownwood, Mineral Wells, Little River Academy, Cameron Yoe

Pool (Gatesville HS Field): Gatesville, Lampasas, Rockdale, Early

“I know the kids would like to qualify and it’s a great experience, and hopefully we will,” said Brashear. “We go to Gatesville next weekend and give it a shot over there. As a coach, that is not the most important thing to me. We need to get better each time out and fix our mistakes.”