BY ADAM WAYBRIGHT
The Stockdale Mustangs came into Independence High School looking to get their second win of the season and did just that by the score of 32-7.
The Mustangs came out hot on offense with two big runs from Sophomore RB Jaykob Jones that placed them in the red zone on their first drive of the game. On the fourth play of the drive, Junior QB Jack Kaiser passed to Jayden Hollis for a 19-yard Mustangs touchdown to put them on the board 7-0.
“All I had in my head was that I had to score,” Hollis said.
At the end of the 1st quarter, Stockdale got the ball back after a fumble was recovered by Nicholas Murillo, his first of two fumble recoveries of the night.
The Mustangs would punch it into the end zone for the second time of the quarter on a 20-yard run from Jaykob Jones.
Jones was emphatic last week about his offensive line’s great effort but this week it was all about trust.
“I love them. I love them to death. No matter what’s going on. It doesn’t matter if it’s a broken play because I know at the end of the day they’ve got my back and I’ve got theirs,” said Jones
Falcons QB Emiliano Rodriguez was sacked seven times in the first half by the Mustangs defense and their offense was stagnant as a result.
Stockdale went into the half with a 26-0 advantage after Kaiser connected with Larry Brown on an 11-yard pass for a Mustangs touchdown and followed it up with another pass to Jayden Hollis quick once more but for a 48-yard touchdown this time around.
The Mustangs’ firepower cooled off in the 2nd half and led to the Independence offense scoring on a 12-yard Zarek Williams touchdown from QB Isaiah Jones in the 4th quarter.
The Falcons recovered an onside kick on the ensuing kickoff but couldn’t manage to mount a comeback.
The Stockdale Mustangs tacked on one more score late thanks to Jack Kaiser who ended the game with 4 touchdowns.
Despite the 32-7 blowout win, Stockdale Head Coach Brett Shelton and the Mustangs weren’t satisfied with their performance late.
“There was a dip down in focus and effort in the 2nd half which is something we can’t do,” Shelton said. “We’ve just got to get better and maintain that focus.”
Stockdale (2-2) will be back at home against Sunnyside (1-3) next Friday at 7:30.
The Falcons (0-4) will be visited next week by the (2-2) Frontier Titans.
Photos by Mark Duffel
