ACHS advances closer to state crown

By the Abilene Reporter-News

For the second consecutive season, the Abilene Christian High School Panthers are one step away from a state championship.

ACHS downed Dallas Academy 56-36 in a Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools Six-Man semifinal game to advance to the championship.

"Our guys are definitely keyed," said ACHS coach Steve Woods. "Since the beginning of the season, our goal was a state championship and now we've got another shot."

And while star quarterback John Estes IV eclipsed two state records with seven touhdown passes (giving him a record 73 for the season) and 315 yards (giving him a record 4,042 yards for the season), it was the Panthers' defense which was the difference in the game.

Junior John Williams, fighting through double-teams nearly all night, still rang up six quarterback sacks and 12 1/2 tackles.

"John just had a huge, huge game," Woods said. "To fight through the double-teaming the way he did was incredible. He has really turned it on the last couple of weeks."

In addition to Williams' inspired play, both ACHS cornerbacks (David Van Rheenen and Joe Rodriguez) intercepted Golden Eagle passes.

One change for the Panthers, though, was the length of the game. For just the second time this season, the game was not halted due to the 45-point rule.

"We were able to wear them out over the long haul," Woods said. "Some of our guys did get cramps, however. We just weren't used to playing the whole game. Going the distance, though, can only help us next week."

While the Panthers are celebrating their return trip to the championship game, they did suffer one costly injury Friday night. Senior nose guard Mark Thomas will miss the state final with a torn rotator cuff, according to preliminary indications.

"Losing Mark is tough because he was a really big part of our defense," Woods said.