Chapin Knocks Off Burges in a Exhilarating 1-5A Showdown

In a game with significant District 1-5A playoff implications, Chapin defeated Burges in epic fashion 27-24 at Mustang Stadium on Friday night.  The first half was a clear defensive battle as the Huskies took a modest 7-6 lead over the Ponies in to the locker room during the intermission.  Chapin's lone score of the first half came at the 10:26 mark of the first quarter when QB Anthony Baird completed a 24 yard touchdown pass to RB Matthew Zubiate.

Burges finally got on the board late in the second quarter when RB Quan McNeil scored on a 49 yard run, however, the PAT was no good.  Zubiate would score again in what became a wild second half with 4:09 left in the third quarter to put the Huskies ahead 14-6.  The Mustangs finally got going offensively early in the fourth quarter as QB Matteo Serrano found WR Michael Amezaga for a 57 yard touchdown at the 10:51 mark to narrow the score to 14-12 Chapin.

The Huskies came right back when Anthony Baird scored on a 19 yard QB keeper, but the extra point attempt was blocked, hence the Huskies 20-12 edge with 7:09 left in the contest.  Burges then came back and said anything you can do I can do better as QB Serrano completed a spectacular 66 yard bomb to Christian Matamoros with 6:14 left, the 2-point conversion failed, resulting in a narrow 20-18 Chapin lead.

The Ponies took their first lead of the game with 1:30 left in regulation as Serrano found WR Christian Yeager for the 28 yard score, the 2-point conversion attempt failed again, but most importantly, they finally lead 24-20.  Chapin then did what a superior team does best, and remained calm as they drove down the field on four plays, ate up the majority of the clock, and Baird found WR Mckeever for a stunning 5 yard jump ball touchdown pass in the far left hand corner of the end zone to give the Huskies the 27-24 victory with :22 seconds left.

The ending to this game was a thing of beauty as Chapin went 77 yards on just four plays to secure the victory, and keep their dreams of a 1-5A title alive with a huge game verses Andress next Friday night.  For Chapin, QB Anthony Baird went 24 for 38 with 294 yards and 3 TD's, RB Matthew Zubiate scored 2 touchdowns, and WR Christian Mckeever had 11 receptions for 172 yards and the game winning touchdown.

With the win, Chapin moves to 8-1, 6-0 in District 1-5A, and will conclude their season against Andress next Friday.  Burges QB Matteo Serrano went 13 for 21 with 226 yards and 3 touchdowns.  With the loss, the Mustangs are now 6-3, 4-2 in District 1-5A, however, with Bowie and El Paso High both losing, clinched a playoff birth and will host Parkland in the Bi-District playoffs in two weeks.