Hawks find Other ways to Win, Beat Luling, 56-28
Canyon Lake won, improving their record to 5-0, after doing the special things Friday night in Luling after clamping the Eagles 56-28.
Doug Hubnik scores first Defensive Touchdown in CL History
The Hawks scored in ways that had not yet been associated with a win or loss in the history of the program. On the 38th game, CLHS learned that the scoreboard would record interceptions and kick-offs that are run back for touchdowns.
Those two scores helped give Canyon Lake the separation they needed to subdue the Luling Eagles.
The records were plentiful in a game that saw the two teams combine for the most aggregate points scored with 84 in this battle…the previous record? 2008 in a loss to Fredericksburg, 65-14 for 79 points.
The Hawks scored conventional, by running and passing and then found that a team would also receive six points if they ran an interception back for a touchdown.
The play came about on Luling’s first drive after four plays and 23 yards, the Eagles were driving into the Hawks territory. The next pass was tipped by the Eagle intended receiver into the waiting hands of defensive back Doug Hubnik with nothing but daylight for the next 60 yards.
“The interception felt real good,” Hubnik quipped. “The strength and conditioning this summer has really helped my speed.”
The score was 14-0 within the first three minutes of the contest.
Oh, we forgot to mention the first play for the Hawks offense. The Luling defense was set on denying Zach Henshaw running room early, as all eyes were fixed on #22 for the hand off.
The result was a 55 yard pass play from QB Branson Belcher to spit end Matt Magness. The drive had Canyon Lake scoring with only 21 seconds being played.
Last year, Magness caught the longest pass in school history, for 88 yards, even after he lost his shoe on the play.
“I tied my shoe extra tight for this play,” the sly Magness said. “The safety bit because of the threat Henshaw was going to run. We had seen how the safeties had played this year setting up this play.”
Matt Magness ‘has shoes’ will travel for a 55 yard Touchdown Reception
Quarterback Belcher also told of the tendencies of teams, “The past few weeks we had noticed the safeties coming up trying to stop the run…I never thought I would pass for that many yards.” (Belcher finished with 323 yards the third most in CL history)
The Eagles had forged the lead in number of plays run in the first quarter 20-7. The Hawks had a 14-0 lead on the scoreboard.
Luling gave the Hawks defense a lot of flat passes to the sidelines with their next drive going 67 yards for a score on five plays.
The Eagles had a 14 play drive to the Hawk’s 18 yard line, when Junior Logan Felps sacked the elusive quarterback, Medford, for an eight yard loss. The fourth down play gave the Hawks a chance to play offense with over two minutes on the first quarter clock.
The drive looked promising with passes to Ryan Bustamante for 25 yards and Quinn Pike for 10. Zach Henshaw contributed 13 tough yards on four carries, when the Hawks saw another first for the season.
A turnover by fumble. On the 232nd offensive play of the year the Hawks had lost the handle on the ball for the first time.
The Hawks also found out that if you run a kick off back across the goal line that the rules show you get six points for that endeavor.
The up-back player on the kick offs, Doug Hubnik, decided to try and help the team by returning the kick 80 yards. The return offset the Eagle score in 17 seconds.
“I was so excited,” a gushing Hubnik said. “I had great blocking, just before I broke free.”
Track Coach Levi Montgomery will need to talk to Hubnik about his time being so slow. Going with that time, Hubnik’s 100 meter run would be right at 20 seconds and no points for the track team.
The special and defensive teams were special, supplying 14 points to the overall cause of how to win football games.
Luling had the opportunity to run 19 and 12 plays consecutively based on the two scores from Hubnik.
The Hawks defense held the Eagles on a fourth down play allowing the offense with way too much time for scoring, before the half.
This 63 yard drive was highlighted by a nifty catch by Tight End, Jeremy Fulton. The 34 yard catch had a lot of players around the ball, but only one player, Fulton, was actually watching for it.
“They (defensive backs) were catching up to me,” Tight End Fulton said. “Then I stopped and they kept running by me, allowing me to catch the ball.”
The play set the Hawks up at the 15 yard line for a Henshaw run with less than a minute left in the half.
Canyon Lake ran a total of 15 plays in the first half and had a 28-6 lead to show for it. That plays out to almost two points per play.
The second quarter saw the Hawks losing the play count again. The score? 14-8 in favor of the Eagles. The point total in the second quarter was 14-6 in favor of Canyon Lake.
The halftime count? Luling 34 plays—Canyon Lake 15. Haftime Score? CLHS 28-Luling 6.
The second half saw a much different game. The Hawks would outscore the Eagles 28-22.
Luling answered first, coming out of the locker room for a 63 yard, five play drive, giving the home team hope. Score? 28-12.
The drive was lethal with two passing plays for 43 yards on a third down play and then a 16 yard pass play for the score. The drive took just two and a half minutes.
Canyon Lake response was much like the first half. The Hawks took just two plays for 65 yards. The clincher, was the 61 yard pass to Quinn Pike from Belcher.
The play was similar to the first pass play of the game to Magness. Time elapsed? :50 seconds.
CL’s defense had a pivotal stop, giving the home team three plays and a punt. The only punt of the game.
The Hawks once again drove 55 yards running on seven plays. Henshaw got the rock five of those plays producing 35 yards.
The highlight of the drive will be a special moment for Henshaw, when he broke his longest run of the night for 22 yards giving him 1,002 yards for the year.
The young man finished with 1,008, breaking the barrier for the third year in a row, but never quicker than this season.
The defense held on Luling’s next drive, with their second interception of the game on a Ryan Bustamante catch and 10 yard return.
Receiver Ryan Bustamante gets grass stains for the 11 yard catch
The next CL drive was the longest and still only took three plays for the score.
A Henshaw reception in the flat and then he flat out ran the defense for a 79 yard touchdown. The play was on a third and 18 yards needed for a first.
“I like catching the ball in the flats,” ‘Receiver’ Henshaw said. “Kyler Huff was blocking for me and that opened the field in the flat.”
The score was the longest play for Henshaw in his career, “I have been waiting since my freshman year for a play like that, that was a great feeling….I would just like to thank everyone for their blocking and also thank my God.”
The last drive produced the most points ever scored for a Hawk team, took two plays. Sound familiar?
The game had turned sloppy in the fourth quarter and the Hawks needed to just go home for a ‘coffee’ break at one of our sponsors, ‘Cup of Joe’s’ and get some needed rest.
Enter Casey cup of Coffee for a 49 yard run and a Belcher run from one yard out for the final score, 56-28. The drive took all of 0:38 seconds for the score.
“The game was sloppy,” QB Belcher ended. “We feel like a whole new ball game and we will have to step up our game a whole lot…Navarro is a very good team and we will have to read our keys and come out and hit them in the mouth.”
“We are not one dimensional,” Head Coach Matt Monzingo zinged. “We can make our yardage different ways…This is a complete program!”
Canyon Lake by the Numbers:
0 The number of times the Hawks have been beaten on the fifth game of the season
1 How many fumbles the Hawks have lost all season
2 How many times the Hawks have fumbled all season
5 Game winning streak
20.1 Average points per game All-Time. First time ever to pass 20,for the team
26 Consecutive extra points made by Jake Robinson
38.8 Average points per game for this season
323 Passing yard in game is second in History, Ingram game in ‘09 was 340 yards
442 Yards the offense is averaging in the last four games
Recap for Canyon Lake Scores:
# of plays Yards How? Time Elapsed Score
1 55 Pass 0:21 7-0
1 60 Int Ret *--- 14-0
1 80 KO Ret 0:17 21-6
7 63 Run 2:53 28-6
2 65 Pass 0:50 35-12
7 55 Run 3:13 42-12
3 74 Pass 1:55 49-12
2 50 Run 0:38 56-28
* Not Long
1 2 3 4 Final
Canyon Lake 14 14 14 14 56
Luling 0 6 6 16 28
Scoring Summary:
Hawks-Matt Magness 55 yard pass from Branson Belcher (Jake Robinson kick), 11:39, 1st
Hawks-Doug Hubnik 60 yard interception return (Robinson kick), 9:11, 1st
Eagle-Medford 20 yard pass from Staten (pat failed), 8:07, 2nd
Hawks-Hubnik 80 yard kick-off return (Robinson kick), 7:50, 2nd
Hawks-Zach Hensshaw 15 yard run (Robinson kick), 0:56, 2nd
Eagle-Munez 16 yard pass from Medford (pat failed), 9:26, 3rd
Hawks-Quinn Pike 61 yard pass from Belcher (Robinson kick), 8:36, 3rd
Hawks-Zach Henshaw 2 yard run (Robinson kick), 4:44, 3rd
Hawks-Zach Henshaw 79 yard pass from Belcher (Robinson kick), 7:45, 4th
Eagle-Henderson 14 yard pass from Medford (Medford run), 7:21, 4th
Eagle-Staten 9 yard run (Medford pass from Staten), 2:25, 4th
Hawks-Belcher 1 yard run (Robinson kick), 1:47, 4th
Hawks Eagles
Total Yards 446 348
First Downs 16 22
Rushes/Yards 18/123 36/112
Comp/Att/Int 11/13/1 26/33/2
Passing Yards 323 236
Punts/Ave 0/0 1/34.0
Fumbles/Lost 1/1 1/0
Penalties-Yds 4-55 5-50
Passing Comp Att Pct Yds TD Int
Branson Belcher 11 13 .846 323 3 1
Rushing Att Yds Ave Lg TD
Zach Henshaw 11 70 6.4 22 2
Casey Coffee 4 58 14.5 49 0
Branson Belcher 2 0 0.0 1 1
Team 1 -5 --- -- -
Receiving No Yds Ave Lg TD
Zach Henshaw 2 90 45.0 79 1
Quinn Pike 2 71 35.5 61 1
Matt Magness 2 65 32.5 55 1
Jeremy Fulton 2 45 22.5 34 0
Ryan Bustamante 2 34 17.0 25 0
Matt Andress 1 8 8.0 8 0
