After a remarkable season that landed the Tidehaven Tigers in the state 3A-2 championship game in Arlington, the Gunter Tigers prevailed 30-14 last Thursday, Dec. 14.
Tiger star senior running back Joseph Dodds turned in a standout game – as he has all season – with 142 rushing yards on 22 carries and a touchdown.
He also had two receptions, including a touchdown catch.
That 11-yard reception of quarterback Kale Russell’s pass put Tidehaven on the scoreboard first at the 3:45 mark in the first quarter.
Gunter answered with a field goal in the first quarter and two touchdowns in the second quarter to go up 17-7.
Russell blasted down the side for a 61-yard run at 3:18 in the second quarter and with Alex Cisneros PAT, the Tigers brought the score to 17-14 at halftime.
The second half was all Gunter with touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters.
Since the Tigers had almost a trademark on second half comebacks this season, the Tidehaven faithful had reason to hope.
Russell was 5 of 18 for 52 yards passing and he had 58 rushing yards on seven carries.
“It was a great season led by a great senior class,” said Head Coach David Lucio.
“I felt our boys were as prepared for the game as they could be. It’s tough to keep 50 teenagers focused when on the road and staying at a hotel,” Lucio added.
“I am proud of how our kids behaved, and how for the most part they treated the trip like a business trip.
“We learned a lot, the kids and the coaches, on how things are done,” he pointed out.
“In the future I think we will do an even better job of being prepared for the game,” the coach noted.
“We lost Wyatt Lee two weeks ago to an ankle injury and then Justin Griffith in the third quarter to a knee injury.
“Those are both two exceptional defensive linemen. Just is also vital to our run game on offense,” Lucio said.
“We were able to avoid major injuries all season until the end, and both were tough to overcome.
Our boys fought until the end, and like I told them, there is nothing to be ashamed of,” he added.
“Two champions locked horns, and they got the better of us on that day,” Lucio said.
“We will not be able to replace some of these seniors, so we will have to have a different approach to the game with what we do have coming back.
“We had a good amount of sophomores contributing this year. We will lean on them the next two years to get us back to Arlington,” he remarked.
“We won’t have very many seniors next year but the ones we do have are pretty good.
Our kids will get back to work in January, we will attempt to outwork everybody in the state and see how far that can take us. It’s what we’ve always done, and so far it has worked for us.”
Lucio said that Baylor-commit Dodds had an early signing day party in the Tidehaven Dome at 11:45 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 20.
