Undefeated Westwood opts for power behind running of Demani Stewart, Ananias Vance

In a game of 91 points and more than 1,000 yards of offense, the most impressive play Friday at Kelly Reeves Athletic Complex strangely came on defense.

In overtime, Westwood senior defensive lineman Jack Ziebell swatted the ball out of a Bastrop ball carrier’s hand, chased after it and jumped on it to keep it from going out of bounds to end the game and secure the Warriors’ 49-42 win in a wild back-and-forth affair.

“By that point we kind of knew what they were going to do, and it was just up to us to stop them,” said Ziebell, a hulking figure who plays on both sides of the ball in the trenches and is being recruited by schools such as Wyoming and Northern Colorado. “I went into pursuit, saw the ball stick out for half a second, and it’s just instinct to knock it out. At that point, someone has to get the ball, so it might as well be me.”

After going 1-9 a year ago, Westwood is 3-0 for the first time since the 2011 team started 8-0.

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And it’s doing so with a powerful running game featuring a one-two combination of juniors Demani Stewart and Ananias Vance.

Stewart rushed for 214 yards and three touchdowns on just 16 carries, while Vance finished with 149 yards and a score.

It’s a far different approach for Warriors coach Anthony Wood, whose teams are usually known for throwing the ball as much as possible.

“We have two really good running backs who we just alternate, and our offensive line is a little bigger and more physical,” Wood said. “We’ve dedicated a lot of our practice time to running the football. After the past few years, it may take a lot for people to really believe we’re going to try and run it.”

Westwood quarterback Owen Norrell threw for 190 yards and a TD and added a score with his legs as the Warriors soared past 500 yards of offense, but they weren’t the only ones who lit up the stat sheet.

Bastrop quarterback Seth Mouser went 19-for-31 for 328 yards and three touchdowns, with his favorite target being wideout Julius Baynard, who had 10 catches for 194 yards and two scores.

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Demire Thompson ran for 132 yards and three TDs to pace the ground attack for the Bears (0-3), who might be the unluckiest team in the country as they’ve lost each of their first three games on the final play of the night.

“You’ve got to give Bastrop a lot of credit for the things they were able to do,” Wood said. “They’re a good team.”

It didn’t take long for the fireworks to start, with Westwood’s Brian Perkins returning the opening kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown.

Bastrop answered later in the first quarter when Mouser and Baynard hooked up from 38 yards out,. The second quarter saw both Stewart — on runs of 11 and 29 yards — and Thompson — on jaunts of 2 and 6 yards — reach the end zone twice, sending the game into halftime tied at 21-21.

Norrell crossed the goal line from the 10-yard line and Mouser hit Reagan Nielsen on a 14-yard TD pass for the third-quarter points, and the Bears took their first one-score lead of the game early in the fourth when Baynard took a quick out route, then sprinted 64 yards down the Bastrop sideline to make it 35-28.

Westwood (3-0) quickly answered on a 75-yard drive of purely runs by Vance and Stewart, with Vance crossing the goal line from 4 yards out.

The Warriors botched the extra-point attempt, but their defense quickly forced a three-and-out, and they took a 42-35 lead on Dylan Cullers’ 77-yard catch-and-run and Vance’s 2-point conversion.

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With the clock winding down, the Bears drove 81 yards in less than three minutes, and Thompson tied the game on a 2-yard dive with 30 seconds left.

In overtime, Stewart reached paydirt from the 3-yard line to cap Westwood’s opening possession.

“The key to our run game was just reading the blocks, trying your hardest and giving maximum effort no matter what happened,” said Stewart, who physically looks as if he could be playing on Saturdays right now. “We trusted our big guys up front, and that was really it.”

Bastrop moved the ball to the Warriors' 12 on two plays before Ziebell made his big play, making sure Westwood stayed perfect on the season.

“It means everything to be 3-0 going into districts,” he said. “No one expects that out of us, so it’s great to put on a show. It’s great to have fans out here, and this is what you want out of a high school football experience, and we’re getting it right now. And that’s all that matters.”

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Undefeated Westwood football led by Demani Stewart, Ananias Vance