By Kevin Jefferies
Commerce –
COMMERCE HIGH SCHOOL TIGERS
The Commerce Tigers defeated the Quinlan-Ford Panthers Friday to make a 3-1 district run and secure a playoff berth for the 15th straight year. A share of the District 11-3A title is likely as well. Quinlan came to town with perhaps their best performance all season for the rivalry against the Tigers. The Panthers looked sharp and came out gunning to send Commerce reeling with a halftime score of 12-9 Quinlan.
Quinlan could not hang on to that lead as they wore down in the second half, however, and a 20 fourth quarter points by Commerce shows a score that does not reflect how close the game was for three quarters. Final score, 35-18 Commerce.
The Tigers will be heading to the playoffs for the 15th straight year. A likely match-up against Kaufman is ahead as the Tigers have a week to think about it as they sit for the last week of the season.
A&M-COMMERCE LIONS
A truly impressive defensive performance by the A&M-Commerce Lions was not enough as they came up short Saturday against West Texas A&M, losing in the final seconds 19-17. The Lions held the fourth best offense in the nation to its lowest point total of the season and led most of the game. The West Texas offense came through in the final seconds, however, as they drove the field with just under two minutes left to play. The Buffaloes found the holes in the Commerce secondary and moved into field goal position with just 6 seconds left in the game. The kick was up and good giving the Lions a heartbreaking loss after an incredible defensive performance against a team averaging nearly 50 points a game.
The Lions end the season on the road this week, facing Southwestern Oklahoma for a 6pm kick-off.