The Vandegrift Vipers have done it again.
Vandegrift erupted for 21 second quarter points to pull away from Round Rock and claim their second straight undefeated district title – seventh straight overall -- with a convincing 35-6 victory Friday (11/8) at Ed W. Monroe Memorial Stadium in the VYPE/ESPN Austin Central Texas High School Football Game of the Week.
Round Rock is the only team to defeat Vandegrift in district play – the Vipers are now a remarkable 49-2 since moving to 13/25-6A – and the Dragons hung in early again this time. Miles Teodecki’s 5-yard touchdown toss to Marcion Williams was the only score in the first quarter.
But the Vipers put it away in the second frame. After the Dragons failed on a 4th-and-1 from their own 20-yard line, senior running back Brendan Fournier (22-102, 2 TDs) dashed in from 15 yards out for a 14-0 lead.
Teodecki (9-14, 105 Yds., 3 TDs) found a wide-open Jack Rudberg streaking over the middle for a 36-yard strike on the next possession to make it 21-0; Finally, Fournier’s second rushing touchdown capped off a long drive to send the Vipers into the locker room leading 28-0.
Even down in the second half, Round Rock remained committed to their running attack. Senior running back Joaquin Maldonado (24-126, 5.3 YPC) had a big night for the Dragons while junior quarterback Jack Appl followed senior running back Aiden “Moose” Garlington’s long run with a 15-yard rushing touchdown to get the Dragons on the board. After trading possessions, the Dragons drove to the Viper 3-yard line and appeared poised to make it a game. However, a resilient Vipers defense combined with several penalties stalled Round Rock’s drive and eventually forced a turnover on downs.
With time winding down, Scott Buchanan snared an acrobatic interception to set the table for Teodecki at the Dragon 14-yard line. The junior signal caller complied with a 10-yard jump pass to senior tight end Hudson Ratcliff to close out the scoring.
Vandegrift (8-0, 9-1) will host District 26-6A D2 #2 seed Austin High (3-3, 5-5) Friday, 11/15 to open the 2024 playoffs; Round Rock (6-2, 8-2) will host Lake Travis in their Bi-district opener.
