Bearkats burn down Forest for Homecoming

42-14 victory puts Kats back in playoff hunt

Amidst mums as tall as the girls wearing them, signs asking Will you go to Homecoming, blue and gold flags and beach balls the Klein faithful packed Memorial Stadium on a pleasant evening to watch football. Led by game day Captains Tanner Seberger, Samer Abdelrahim, Martin Rizzetto and Cameron Ashenbeck, the Kats were ready for a shootout with the Klein Forest Eagles. Klein won the toss and deferred to the second half, so Kyle Pfau lofted the opening kickoff to the goal line and Nolan Byrne made the stop for the Kats at the 20 yard line. The Eagle offense was fired up as well as they needed only 3 plays to put points on the board. On 1st down, the Eagles QB broke loose for 54 yards before Kendal Jefferies and Alex Crump teamed up on TD saving tackle, but 2 plays later the Eagles scored on a 27 yard run and took an early 7-0 lead. Jefferies returned the kickoff for the Kats out to the 41 yard line, and the Kats took even less time to answer the Eagles. Othello Gibson took the handoff and burst straight up the middle of the field, cut left and sprinted 59 yards into the end zone for the TD. Pfaus PAT was good and the score was tied at 7-7 with 10:23 left on the clock. Forest began their next possession at the 13 yard line after Jefferies made the stop on the kickoff. The Kats defense forced a punt after giving up a first down on the drive. Chris Howard, JP Thompson, Philippe Orion made tackles for the Kats before Bobby Baker and Martin Rizzetto teamed up on a sack to force the Eagle punt that rolled dead at the Kats 24 yard line. The Kats offense gained 10 yards on a rush by David Hamm, but turned it over on a fumble in the backfield. Forest would need only 3 plays to take the lead as they completed a 16 yard pass for a TD with 5:30 left in the 1st quarter. The PAT made the score 14-7 Forest. The Bearkats offense took possession at the 37 yard line and would quickly tie the score at 14. Josh Atherton made a nice catch on a Rainer Ausmus pass and carried it 27 yards down to the Eagle 37. Gibson and Hamm each had a short gain, before Ausmus hit Gibson in stride on a seam route for a 32 yard TD. Pfaus PAT was good with 3:08 left in the 1st. The Eagles started their next drive at the 20 after the kick off sailed through the end zone. The Kats defense bent, but did not break on the next series, as the Eagles drove the ball 40 yards before turning it over on downs. Kendal Jefferies, Chris Wade and Chris Howard made stops for the Kats on the drive and Joel Friedman just missed an interception in breaking up a big pass attempt. The Kats offense moved the ball into Forest territory on their next drive, but were forced to punt the ball away. Gibson gained 32 yards on 5 carries during the drive, but a procedure penalty and an incompletion led to a Mac Odom punt that was fair caught at the 8 yard line. The Kats defense took the field and forced a turnover deep in Eagle territory. After Wade made a stop for no gain, Dakota Aplanalp pressured the Eagles QB who fumbled the ball and Philippe Orion recovered it at the 12 yard line. One play later, Othello Gibson swept down the sideline into the end zone and

the Kats had their first lead of the game. The Pfau PAT made the score Klein 21 Forest 14 with 7:32 left in the first half. The Eagles started their next possession deep in Klein territory after an offside penalty was added to the return. Starting at the 32 yard line, the Kats defense held strong as they forced another turnover. Howard, Orion and Antonio Aguirre made stops before Forest moved the sticks on 4th and inches. Bobby Baker made the next stop on a short gain before the QB dropped the ball scrambling to avoid a tackle and the Kats recovered at the 15 yard line with 4:36 left in the half. Both teams exchanged punts with David Hamm gaining 21 yards on 3 carries during the Kats possession and Bobby Baker and Martin Rizzetto making stops for the Kats defense. Bakers sack for a loss of 7 forced the punt that rolled dead at the 12 yard line. Time ran out in the half, as the Kats moved the ball out to midfield as Gibson gained 40 yards on 4 carries, with the score Klein 21 Forest 14. The Kats received the opening kickoff of the 2nd half, as Mac Odom brought the ball out to the 32 yard line. The Kats opened up with a 12 yard completion from Ausmus to Atherton, but a holding penalty and 2 short gains forced a Klein punt that rolled dead at the 20 yard line. The Bearkat defense would post their first points of the year after Chris Howard made a stop for a 2 yard gain. On 2nd down, Bobby Baker stripped the ball from the QB and Chris Wade scooped it up at the 18 yard line and dashed into the end zone to give the Kats a 28 14 lead with 8:23 left in the 3rd quarter. Kyle Pfaus kickoff could not be returned and the Eagles took possession at the 25 yard line. On 1st down, Joel Friedman saved a TD as he made a tackle 43 yards down field, but the Kats defense held as Howard and Baker made stops to force 3rd and long. Under pressure from Howard, the Forest QB fumbled in the backfield, but the Eagles recovered and were forced to punt the ball away. Starting at the 16 yard line, the Kats stayed on the ground with Gibson gaining 30 yards on the his next 2 carries and David Hamm gaining 19 more yards to the Eagles 35. 2 short gains by Hamm and a short gain by Ausmus brought up 4th and 4, but the Kats turned it over on downs when the pass fell incomplete. Forest took over at the 30 yard line and put together a long drive. Using 13 plays, and 2 pass interference calls, they were able to move inside the Bearkats 10 yard line. Wade, Friedman, Orion, Jefferies, Byrne, Baker, Aguirre and Rizzetto made plays for the Kat defense to set up a 4th and goal at the 8 yard line. The Eagles completed a pass to the 2 yard line, but a Kendal Jefferies hit forced a fumble and Chris Wade recovered and carried the ball out to the 10 yard line with 9:00 minutes left in the game. The Kats, led by the offensive line of Grant Harmon, Sam LoCaste, Chris Burger, Alex Nguyen, Zach Faulise, Kyler Nordgran, Josh Atherton and Nick Kaderli, opened huge holes as Othello Gibson covered 90 yards on 5 carries, including an 8 yard run for his 4th TD of the game. Pfaus PAT made the score Klein 35 Forest 14 with 7:45 left in the game. The Kats squib kick rolled out of bounds, and the Eagles got the ball at the 38 yard line. Dakota Aplanalp made the stop on 1st down for a short loss and BJ Fashola made the 2nd down tackle, before JP Thompson stepped

in front of the intended receiver and intercepted the pass at the 48 yard line and returned to the 15 yard line. The Kats offense posted the final points of the game with Othello Gibson scoring his 12th TD in 2 games as he dashed 21 yards into the corner of the end zone to raise the score to 42 -14 with 4:23 left in the game. Eric Hoefler made the tackle on the ensuing kickoff at the 45 yard line and the desperate Eagle offense started throwing the ball. After 3 incompletions, Thompson snagged his 2nd interception of the game and the Kats took over with 3:32 left to play. Mac Odom took over at QB and fed the ball to Isaiah Landor, who gained 9 yards on 2 carries. Odom converted the 1st down and the Kats went into the victory formation to clinch a Homecoming win over Forest by the score of 42-14. The Kats travel next Thursday evening to Turner Stadium in Humble to play the Kingwood Mustangs in an important District matchup.