Shiner St. Paul wins 5th TAPPS state title
Friday, December 5, 2015
by Tony Tsoukalas, Advocate Sports Writer
AdvoSports.com Article | St. Paul Cardinal Football | St. Paul Cardinal Sports
CEDAR CREEK - Despite the cold night, Shiner St. Paul football coach Jake Wachsmuth didn't mind his ice bath one bit.
TJ Bell heads to score a Cardinal touchdown during their TAPPS Division III State Final game against Cedar Hill Trinity Christian.
[ NOTE: click on photo to enlarge ]all photos by Jaime Carrero for The Victoria Advocate
Wachsmuth's Cardinals earned their fifth TAPPS championship Friday night, after defeating defending champion Cedar Hill Trinity Christian, 43-40, in the Division III title game at Bastrop Memorial Stadium. The win completes a perfect season for the Cardinals, who finish the year with a 14-0 record.
"I'm all good," said Wachsmuth after being drenched with ice water by his players. "This is unbelievable."
Running back T.J. Bell led the way for St. Paul, accounting for four of the Cardinals' seven touchdowns on the night.
Trailing 31-26 and facing a third-and-23 with less than nine minutes remaining, Bell corralled a pass from quarterback Austin Barton and raced down the left sideline 64 yards for a touchdown.
Trinity Christian quarterback Malachi Broadnax put the Tigers back on top on their next possession when he hit Marvin White for an 8-yard touchdown, but once again Bell responded.
The senior returned the ensuing kickoff 84 yards for a touchdown before adding a 54-yard score later in the quarter to help the Cardinals put the game out of reach.
"I had great blocks," Bell said. "I saw holes, and I just took them. It's a dream come true."
The St. Paul HS Cardinals enter Bastrop Stadium for their TAPPS Division III State Final game against Cedar Hill Christian.
[ NOTE: click on photo to enlarge ]
Bell finished the game with 223 yards and three touchdowns on 25 carries, scoring on runs of 60, 16 and 54 yards.
Barton had 90 yards on the ground, including a 52-yard touchdown for the Cardinals' opening score. The junior quarterback was 2 of 8 passing for 119 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Ryan Geiger also stepped up for St. Paul, reeling in a 55-yard touchdown from Barton while coming up with some key plays on defense.
"Just look at them," Wachsmuth said of his players. "They play through pain. They play through being tired. It's just a special group of kids."
After spending all season relying on its defense, it was the St. Paul offense that had to save the day. The 40 points scored by Trinity Christian (10-4) were the most the Cardinals allowed all season. St. Paul had held opponents to 60 points total in its previous 13 games.
Broadnax led the Tigers, completing 26 of 44 passes for 395 yards and four touchdowns. White had 10 receptions for 194 yards and a touchdown, while fellow receiver Willie Jackson had three touchdowns and 150 yards on 10 catches. Running back Isaiah Davis had two touchdowns on the ground for the Tigers.
"Our defense had their hands full," Wachsmuth said. "That is a really good football team. I can't even tell you all the players, because they are everywhere. Our offense has been playing better, and our defense made big stops when it needed to."
Broadnax found Jackson for a 6-yard touchdown with 16 seconds remaining in the game to help Trinity Christian cut the lead to 43-40. However, the ensuing onside kick was smothered by the Cardinals to seal the victory.
"This is perfect," Bell said "I couldn't think of anything better."
Tony Tsoukalis is a sports writer for The Victoria Advocate.
Contact him at 361-574-1222, or by e-mail at ttsoukalas@vicad.com.
GAME STATISTICSsource: https://www.victoriaadvocate.com/sports/games/results/football/cedar-hill-trinity-christian-at-shiner-st-paul/6219/ TAPPS DIVISION III STATE CHAMPIONSHIP Shiner St. Paul 43 v. Cedar Hill Trinity Christian 40 December 4, 2015, 7:30 p.m. Memorial Stadium, Bastrop SCORING SUMMARY 1 2 3 4 F Cedar Hill Trinity Christian 7 7 6 20 -- 40 Shiner St. Paul 19 6 0 18 -- 43 SCORING DETAILS: First Quarter SP - Austin Barton 52 run (Barton kick) 11:26 TC - Willie Jackson 66 pass from Malachi Broadnax (Eric Aranda kick) 5:50 SP - Ryan Geiger 55 pass from Barton (kick failed) 5:12 SP - T.J. Bell 60 run (try failed) 0:38 Second Quarter SP - Bell 16 run (try failed) 7:54 TC - Jackson 20 pass from Broadnax (Aranda kick) 6:13 Third Quarter TC - Isaiah Davis 2 run (kick failed) 8:27 Fourth Quarter TC - Davis 6 run (try failed) 11:52 SP - Bell 64 pass from Barton (try failed) 8:45 TC - Marvin White 8 pass Broadnax (try failed) 7:20 SP - Bell 84-yard kick return (try failed) 7:06 SP - Bell 54 run (try failed) 2:23 TC - Jackson 6 from Broadnax (Broadnax to White) 0:16 TEAM STATISTICS: Cedar Hill Trinity Christian Shiner St. Paul Penalties 4 2 Penalty Yards 35 15 Attempted Passes 44 8 Completed Passes 26 2 Passing Interceptions 0 0 Passing Touchdowns 4 2 Passing Yards 395 119 Rushes 32 45 Rushing Yards 132 345 Rushing Touchdowns 2 4 Fumbles 0 2 Fumbles Lost 0 0 Punts 4 3 Punting Yards 108 106 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS: Passing Player Comp Att Pct Yd Int Trinity Christian Malachi Broadnax 26 44 59.0% 395 0 Shiner St Paul Austin Barton 2 8 25.0% 64 0 Rushing Player Rush Yd Y/R Trinity Christian Isaiah Davis 8 15 1.87 Malachi Broadnax 8 24 3.00 Trenton Chambers 4 18 4.50 Shiner St Paul Jed Janecek 3 7 2.33 Ryan Geiger 6 17 2.83 Austin Barton 11 90 8.18 T.J. Bell 25 223 8.92 Receiving Player Recv Yd Avg Trinity Christian Camiron Smith 0 1 - Kamarian Webster 0 1 - Marvin White 10 194 19.4 Trenton Chambers 4 60 15.0 Willie Jackson 10 150 15.0 Shiner St Paul Ryan Geiger 1 55 55.0 T.J. Bell 1 64 64.0
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