Tipton outlasts Snyder in key district showdown

    Tipton’s Tigers remained unbeaten on the season as they outgunned archrival Snyder, 52-38, in a key District B-1 showdown Friday night.

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    “It was a big win,” Tipton coach Jim Kerbo said, “and I was real proud of our kids.  Snyder’s a great football team, and I’m not ashamed to say we gave up 38 points to them because their capable of hanging 50 or 60 on anybody.”
    The Tigers are capable of putting some points on the board, too, as they entered the game leading the state in average points per game at 53.7.  Friday night would be no different as the game’s offensive fireworks rivaled any Independence Day celebration as both teams lit up the scoreboard early and often.
    Robert Jasper got the Tigers on the board first as he raced 81 yards to the endzone on the game’s first play.  The two-point conversion failed and the Tigers led 6-0.
    Snyder quickly let the hometown Tigers know that they weren’t going to run away with this one.  The Cyclones answered on their first possession when quarterback Clifton Keeble found Michael Parker for a 45-yard scoring strike.  Frank Valderas added the two-point conversion and Snyder took an 8-6 lead after one quarter.
    The two teams traded blows in the second quarter with both adding two touchdowns before the half.
    Tiger quarterback Justin White connected with Nathan Soliz for a 35-yard touchdown.  The two-point conversion was no good and the Tigers led 12-8.
    Snyder regained the lead moments later as Keeble found the other Parker brother, Geoff, streaking down the sideline for a 71-yard scoring strike.  Keeble and Parker connected again for the two-point conversion giving the Cyclones a 16-12 advantage.
    Tipton rallied as Eric Hill bowled his way into the endzone from two yards out, but once again the boys in black couldn’t push it over the goal for the two-pointer and the Tigers had to settle for an 18-16 lead.
    “We’ve got to buckle down and get better at two-point conversions,” Kerbo said of the Tigers’ extra point tries, “because that’s going to cost us a big ball game one of these nights if we don’t buckle down and punch those things across.”
    Snyder came roaring back and the Cyclones once again took the lead.  This time Valderas did the damage scoring from six yards out with just 14 seconds left in the half giving the Cyclones a 22-18 lead at the intermission.
    The Tigers set the tone for the second half early in the third as 265-pound defensive end David McCall intercepted a screen pass and rumbled 40 yards to paydirt.  Jasper added the two-point conversion putting the Tigers up four, 26-22.
    “I thought that was a big difference in the ball game when we got the turnover early in the second half and ran it in for a touchdown.” Kerbo said of the game’s turning point, “David McCall did a great job reading the screen and taking it in for the touchdown.  I thought that turned the game around.”
    Minutes later the Tigers extended the lead to ten as White scored on a four-yard run, 32-22.
    Snyder tried to keep up as Keeble sprinted 80 yards to the endzone, and Valderas added the two-pointer cutting the Tiger lead to two, 32-30.
    For Snyder, it was all down “Hill” from there as that was as close as the Cyclones would get as Tipton exploded for three touchdowns giving the Tigers a 52-30 lead.
    The Tigers’ combination of Hill’s, Eric, Anthony, and Shawn, sealed the victory for Tipton on touchdown runs of 36-, 58-, and five yards, respectively.
    The Cyclones added a late touchdown as Keeble again hooked up Parker, this time for a 54-yard touchdown completion, for the game’s final margin, 52-38.
    “Preparing for them (Snyder) is a nightmare with as many sets and alignments as they throw at you,” Kerbo said of the Cyclones, “and I was real proud of our kids.  We didn’t get lost a lot (defensively), just two or three plays, and that’s to be expected when you play a team that’s that diverse.  They got a couple of big plays off of that, and in the first half our tackling wasn’t very good.  I thought when I challenged the kids at halftime that they responded and came out and played real hard and tackled a lot better in the second half.”
    The win keeps the Tigers in the driver’s seat in a tough District B-1 race, but Tipton has another tough assignment this week when they travel to Alex to play the Longhorns on Friday.