ABILENE – A week after watching a 27-point halftime lead evaporate into a loss, the Bangs Dragons went full throttle and secured their second victory of the season Friday night, 71-6 over the Abilene TLCA Eagles.
Bangs (2-2) finished with 502 yards of total offense – 385 rushing and 117 passing – and scored 38 points in the first quarter, 7 in the second, and 26 in the third against TLCA (0-4), which had been outscored 173-14 heading into Friday’s contest.
Three Dragons finished with at least 100 yards on the ground – quarterback Skylar Minshew with 128 yards and three touchdowns, Jackson Edmiston with 121 yards and one score, and Eliseo Rivas with 117 yards and a trip to the end zone. Nevaeh Menefield also chipped in 15 yards and scored once.
Through the air, Minshew connected on 8 of 10 passes for 113 yards with three scoring strikes – all to Cason Tidwell, who tallied six receptions for 75 yards to go along with his three trips to the end zone. Braxton Wommack added a 19-yard touchdown grab as well.
Defensively, the Dragons yielded just 69 total yards – all on the ground as TLCA did not complete a pass – with 18 tackles for loss, six sacks and a fumble recovery.
Hunter Crowell led Bangs with 9.5 tackles, including 4 for loss, with a fumble recovery, along with Connor Bible with 6.5 tackles, 3 sacks, and 2 tackles for loss; Chris Valdez with 5.5 tackles and 3 for loss; Jaxon Duncan with 4.5 tackles and 1 for loss; Edmiston with 4.5 tackles; Kian Kelly with 4 tackles and a sack; Rivas with 4 tackles and 2 for loss; Tidwell with 3.5 tackles and 1 for loss; Kason Klutts and Noah Castillo both with 2.5 tackles and 1 for loss; Mason Minshew with 2 tackles, both behind the line of scrimmage; and John Paul Rangel with 1.5 tackles and 1 for loss.
Next week, the Dragons wrap up their pre-district slate at home against Colorado City (1-3), which is coming off a 34-28 triumph over Grape Creek – the team that rallied to stun Bangs last week, 38-27.