By Quixem Ramirez
The Georgetown Eagles snuffed out any semblance of a Hays Rebel comeback attempt in its 40-17 victory Friday night at Bob Shelton Stadium with a dominant second half performance.
Georgetown leapt out to a 13-0 lead after the first quarter, but Hays outscored Georgetown 17-7 in the second quarter, shaving the Eagles' lead to three points at 20-17 at halftime.
When the second half resumed, Georgetown provided the scoring punch and Hays was left punchless.
The Eagles tacked on two field goals in the third quarter before quarterback Chandler Herman connected with wide receiver Caden Leggett for a 12-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. A Michael McDonald five-yard rushing touchdown on the ensuing drive was the finishing touch on a 40-17 win.
Hays failed to convert on fourth down five times in the game, oftentimes gifting Georgetown with the ball in Rebels territory.
The aggressiveness backfired each time and Georgetown continued to add on to its growing lead. Hays defensive back Jason Fowler dropped an interception in the first quarter that would've ended Georgetown's possession and may have resulted in points for the Rebels. Instead, the ball was incomplete and the Eagles scored a touchdown later in the drive.
Hays' first touchdown of the game resulted from a bit of improvisation between quarterback Gentry Brawith and wide receiver Pat Guerrero.
Brawith utilized a well-timed pump fake, Georgetown’s defensive back took an errant route on the ball and Guerrero finished the job with a 55-yard touchdown. Guerrero led the Rebels with five catches, 72 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Brawith completed 13 of 21 passes for 142 yards and one touchdown. Junior Tyler Conley replaced Brawith late in the first half and finished the night completing 8 of 11 passes for 115 yards and one touchdown. Brawith who left with an unspecified injury, returned in the second half.
Hays (1-1) finished with 352 total yards in the loss Friday night.
