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Hosts with the most: West continues strong summer run
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@acnpapers.com
The Plano West 7-on-7 football team lost a game Saturday.
Normally that wouldn’t be noteworthy as 7-on-7 teams across the Metroplex fell en masse that same day, but it was notable for the Wolves partly because they were hosting the Plano West State Qualifying Tournament but also because it marked the Wolves’ first defeat of the summer.
“We had very few positive things happen last fall,” said Kelly Mercer, West offensive coordinator, “so the kids are working on just competing from play-to-play, game-to-game.”
“This is by far the best defensive effort I've seen since we started playing 7-on-7,” Mercer said. “And offensively, Carson (senior quarterback Smith) is learning to take what the defensive gives him and the receivers are learning how to get open.”
After starting the season 8-0, West dropped its Pool A opener to Coppell, 25-19. That was the first of five straight wins for the Cowboys, who would go on to win the West SQT after defeating Duncanville in the finals, 33-32. The Wolves picked up some wins after that as well as they defeated fellow Pool A teams Rockwall, 40-18, and Carrollton Creekview, 27-6, to finish pool play at 2-1.
That record matched fellow District 8-5A squad Allen, which went 2-1 in Pool B.
“We did alright,” said Tom Westerberg, Allen head coach, “I think this is the fourth or fifth year in a row we have won two games and didn’t advance.”
Allen bookended pool play Saturday with a pair of wins as the Eagles defeated Prosper, 32-14, and Denton, 33-14. The middle game would pose more of a problem as Allen lost to eventual pool champion McKinney, 44-33.
“We came up a little short against McKinney,” Westerberg said. “I think we had four interceptions and two or three came off tipped passes, which usually aren’t a good thing.”
Both fared better than the other 8-5A team taking the field Saturday at West as Hebron finished Pool C at 1-2 following a 19-12 win over Richland and back-to-back losses to Duncanville, 32-13, and Lake Highlands, 32-6.
Hebron’s two losses in one day represent more than West has all summer.
Following Saturday’s games, West upped its summer record to 10-1. The Wolves got off to a 5-0 start by winning the Frisco Liberty SQT.
“I thought the Liberty event was the best oveall day of 7-on-7 we’ve ever played,” Mercer said. “We’ve had great defensive and offensive games in the past, but the way the kids played on both sides of the ball all day long was very exciting to watch.”
It was exciting and it also qualified West for the 7-on-7 State Tournament, which is set for July 15-16 in College Station. This is the third time the Wolves, who are scheduled for the Wylie SQT Saturday and the Rockwall SQT June 25, have advanced to state. The team also made the cut in 2008 and 2010.
“The kids are excited about being able to go compete against other teams from around the state,” Mercer said.
While heading to state has the Wolves fired up, the West coaching staff sees different reasons to be excited, namely how the summer could impact play in the regular season.
“There is a lot of teaching that goes on in the spring,” Mercer said. “A lot of time is spent just learning our schemes and 7-on-7 allows our guys to practice that even more and then learn the small intricacies that will help them be more successful in the fall.”
Firecracker Classic cancelled
Saturday’s West SQT was not the only 7-on-7 tournament scheduled in Plano this summer, but the list has gotten shorter with the cancellation of the Firecracker Classic, a select 7-on-7 tournament that was scheduled for Clark Stadium.
The event was to be sponsored by Avery Air Conditioning and Heating, VYPE and The Old Coach.
“The weekend that was chosen proved to be tough to get commitments,” The Old Coach confirmed.
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