Indians built halftime lead in second region-round game

Brandon Ramon’s Harlandale career lasted long enough for it to come full circle, if only for a fraction of one play.

As a sophomore, Ramon started at wide receiver. He became a receiver again in the first quarter of the Indians’ Class 4A Region round game at Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos.

When the ball was snapped, he took a pitch back from senior back Nick Martinez and launched a 25-yard flea-flicker pass to Ian Martinez (76 yards, 6 receptions) for the game’s first touchdown six seconds from the end of the quarter.

Harlandale (10-3) also scored in the second quarter, on a 31-yard strike from Ramon (29 of 42. 302 yards) to James Mendoza (64 yards, 6 receptions) for a 13-8 halftime lead. Ramon completed 14 of 18 passes in the first half.

The lead held for the first 45 seconds of the second half. Then the Raiders (10-3) broke away for a 43-21 victory.

Rouse quarterback Billy McCrary (249 yards, 17 carries) dashed 54 yards for the first touchdown of the second half. About 2 ½ minutes later, Andre Alger (99 yards, 11 attempts) ran for another Raiders score.

McCrary passed just five times for the school from Leander, completing two. Wesley Geisler caught both,  including the 29-yard, back-breaking reception. He also scored on a 28-yard reverse. McCrary added a 74-ayrd scoring run.

An 18-yard pass from Ramon to senior tight end Kevin LaFosse ended a Rouse streak of 35 uninterrupted points with 4:27 to play.

Rouse ran for 456 yards while limiting Harlandale to 39. Nick Martinez ran for 42 yards. Eddie Pedroza made eight catches for 82 yards for the Indians.

Harlandale won 10 games for the sixth time in school history and advanced to the region round for the second time.