North Shore Goes From 1-3 Start to State Champs

By Chris Doelle
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Updated: December 19, 2015

Galena Park North Shore (13-3) vs. Austin Westlake (14-2)
Texas High School Football Class 5A DI State Championship
4:00 p.m. Saturday, NRG Stadium, Houston

NRG Stadium - The Galena Park North Shore Mustangs beat the Austin Westlake Chaparrals in overtime 21-14 in the Class 6A Division I Championship game. This was North Shore’s 2nd all-time championship as they had won the 2003 5A Division I championship. Westlake falls to 1-7 in state championship games. This was the 2nd time in a row that they lost the championship in overtime. The Chaps won the title in 1996.

For a game that featured two high powered offenses, it was defense that shone. It seemed that every single big play in the game was on the defensive side of things.

The first quarter ended in a 0-0 tie. Westlake started off the quarter looking strong but turned the ball over on downs when they attempted a fake punt. That gave North Shore the ball at their 49. The Mustangs were not able to do anything and punted. The Chaps got the ball at their own 20 and fumbled just a few plays later on their own 30. North Shore was able to get to the 10 before they attempted a field goal. The field goal was blocked and Westlake got a big return but after a penalty got it at their own 41. The quarter ended with the Chaps moving into Mustangs territory.

Early in the 2nd quarter, RB/WR Kylen Granson took a handoff 16 yards in for the score. The Chaps lead 7-0 with 11:24 left in the 2nd. Westlake stopped North Shore on three plays to take over at their own 24. They drove to the North Shore 24 before turning it over on downs. The Mustangs then went on a drive themselves into Westlake territory before having to punt. The Chaps went 3 and out and punted to give the Mustangs the ball at the Westlake 44 with 1:20 remaining in the half. Mustang quarterback Maciah Long was able to sneak it over from 1 yard out with 4 seconds remaining in the half. The half ended with the score knotted at 7.

North Shore punted on their first possession of the 2nd half. Westlake took over and drove from their 19 to inside the North Shore 20. Westlake fumbled at the North Shore 8 and the ball was picked up by LB Andrew Hyacinth on a "scoop and score" 95 yards for the score. North Shore took the lead 14-7 with 5:06 remaining. The Chaps punted on their next possession and they were able to force North Shore into a punt on their next set of downs. The punt was blocked and Matthew Sams picked it up at the 41 yard line and scored. That made the score to 14-14 with 21 seconds left in the 3rd. North Shore had possession to end the third quarter.

The teams traded punts to start the 4th quarter. North Shore took over and moved into Westlake territory but had a pass intercepted inside the Westlake 20. After a Chap punt, the Mustangs again moved into Westlake territory but missed on a 38 yard field goal. The Chaps took control at their own 21 with 2:06 left in the game. Austin Westlake drove to the North Shore 15. From there they lined up for a field goal to win the game but that was blocked by K'Lavon Chaisson saving the game for North Shore. The game went into overtime.

North Shore got the ball first and quarterback Maciah Long scored from 1 yard out. Westlake made it to the 3 yard line and had to go for it on 4th down. The play was stopped and North Shore took the win 21-14 in overtime.

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Game notes:

Westlake High School (172 miles) vs. North Shore High School (21 miles)
Westlake won the State 7-on-7 Championship
Westake Quarterback Sam Ehlinger came in with 50 touchdown passes and broke school records as a junior at a school that produced Drew Brees and Nick Foles.
Westlake defense had forced 33 TO’s
Westlake hsd 28 combined TD receptions by Cokley and Klubnick
Westlake Snapped Allen’s 57 game winning streak in the Semifinals
North Shore was 1-3 to start the season that included three consecutive losses to Manvel, Westfield and Trinity.
North Shore defense has only allowed 3 passing TD’s in the playoffs
North Shore had rushed for 5.8 yards per carry
Game Stats: Turnovers WL 3 NS 1
Game Stats: Westlake QB Sam Ehlinger 82 rushing yards 14 of 28 passing for 219 yards
Game Stats: Westlake WR Chase Cokely 4 catches 107 yards
Game Stats: Westlake LB Levi Jones 12 tackles 1 sack 2 TFL
Game Stats: North Shore QB Maciah Long 82 rushing yards 6 of 12 passing for 46 yards
Game Stats: North Shore LB Mayco Cruz 8 tackles 1.5 TFL
Game Stats: North Shore LB Leandre Dever 8 tackles 1.5 TFL