Muleshoe eliminated by Eagles

VERNON, Texas — For about 2 1/2 quarters on Friday night, underdog Muleshoe hung with a team that had won 28 games in a row and outscored its first 12 opponents 628-101.

Then Brock’s Gray brothers took over.

Tyler and Matthew Gray each rushed for two touchdowns and combined for nearly 300 yards on the ground as the defending Class 3A Division I state champion and top-ranked Eagles pulled away to a 48-19 victory over the Mules in a regional round game, improving to 13-0 this season.

The Grays each scored once in the first half, but when Mules senior Dagen Dunham caught his second touchdown pass of the game from senior quarterback Beto Diaz on a fourth-and-5 play from the Brock 21, Muleshoe trailed just 14-13 with 8:25 left in the third period.

The tying PAT kick failed, however, and the Eagles countered with a seven-play, 61-yard march ending in a 12-yard run by sophomore Toby Morrison,

Two more scores before the end of the period, one following a successful fake punt, made it 34-13 and all but put the game out of reach.

Tyler Gray was a workhorse, finishing with 195 yards on 30 carries, while Matthew Gray added 92 yards on just seven totes.

All but 12 of the Eagles’ 422 total yards came on the ground and they threw just three passes. Five players scored for Brock, with Tyler Gray tallying on runs of 3 and 45 yards and Matthew Gray scoring on runs of 16 and 44.

The Mules compiled 353 total yards, with Diaz completing 24-of-51 passes for 299 yards and three scores. The final TD toss came in the fourth quarter on a 15-yard pass to senior Jason Florez, who finished with 11 catches for 196 yards.

The Eagles move on to face Wall (10-3), a 55-7 winner over Littlefield, in a 7:30 p.m. (CST) state quarterfinal matchup on Friday at Abilene.