Grapevine ends season with two losses, both to Argyle, as Eagles knock off Mustangs

Argyle found out that beating a team twice in a season is a task.

Grapevine’s bid to end the Eagles season came up short Friday night, but the Mustangs gave it their best shot during a 44-27 loss in a Class 5A Division 2 regional semifinal at Dragon Stadium.

Argyle (13-0) playing in its first season in Class 5A will face the winner of Saturday’s game between Cantillo (10-2) and Abilene Wylie (9-3) in the Region 1 final next weekend.

On Sept. 9, Argyle defeated Grapevine, 31-15, in a non-district game.

With 5:27 to play in the third quarter, Grapevine (11-2) cut Argyle’s lead to 30-27 when Evan Baum hooked up with Kaden Cook for a 90-yard. The score coupled with a 53-yard scoring strike from Baum to Derruis Burns on the Mustangs’ previous possession all but erased a strong first-half effort by the Eagles.

Baum finished with 11 of 23 passing for 223 yards and three touchdowns. Cook hauled in four passes for 120 yards and a score while Burns had two catches for 75 yards.

Parker Polk led the Mustangs’ rushing attack with 28 yards for 125 yards.

But the Eagles answered with a 25-yard touchdown run by R.J. Bunnell with 4:22 to play in the third quarter and a 5-yard scoring pass from John Gailey to Hunter McFaul late in the fourth quarter. Gailey threw for 210 yards and two scores.

Argyle’s special teams helped things along by blocking a 37-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter that could have sliced the Eagles’ lead to 37-30. The Eagles nearly put the game away in the waning minutes of the first half when they scored a pair of touchdowns in the span of 16 seconds to push a 16-12 advantage to 30-12 at halftime.

After Argyle reeled off 16 unanswered points to open the game, Grapevine fought back with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Baum to Brady Wagner and a 2-yard run by Reid Watkins with 2:04 to play in the first half.

On the next play from scrimmage, Gailey hit Will Krzysiak for a 74-yard score that put Argyle up 23-12 with 1:46 in the second quarter. Argyle’s defense struck the next blow when Devon Owen intercepted a pass at the Mustangs’ 35 and returned it for a touchdown that gave the Eagles a 30-12 lead with 1:30 to play in the half.

Argyle scored on its first three possessions to take a 16-0 first-quarter lead.

Landon Farris sandwiched touchdown runs of 11 and 4 yards around a 34-yard field goal by Carter Buxton to take early control. Farris carried 17 times for 73 yards and two touchdowns. Bunnell finished with 75 yards and a score on 11 attempts.

In the second quarter, Grapevine put together a pair of scoring drives. The first was capped by a 5-yard pass from Baum to Wagner covered eight plays and 71 yards. On the next drive Grapevine covered 80 yards on 13 plays to cut Argyle’s lead to 16-12 on a 2-yard run by Watkins.