Firsco Lone Star 55, Forney 13
by Robert Thomas, special contributor
PLANO -- Frisco Lone Star punched its ticket to the third round of the playoffs on Friday night, rolling up 584 yards on offense to go with eight sacks on defense to power a 55-13 victory over Forney in a Class 5A Division II Region II area contest at John Clark Stadium.
Lone Star, now 11-1, will face the winner of South Oak Cliff and Marshall in next week's regional quarterfinals.
"This was the best week of preparation we've had all year," said Frisco Lone Star coach Jeff Rayburn. "Our kids came out and executed at a high level from the start and made a lot of big plays to get us going."
Lone Star's offense was clicking from the start, as they scored on each of its first six possessions to take command of the playoff contest.
The first three touchdowns belonged to Darrin Smith, including a 43-yard scoring run, to build a 20-0 lead in the opening quarter. Smith finished with a game-high 156 yards rushing and four touchdowns, pacing a ground game that finished with 272 yards.
Lone Star capped the opening quarter with an impressive 90-yard drive on eight plays, with Chris Miller scoring on a four-yard run to push the lead to 27-0 heading to the second quarter.
The defense kept the pressure on against Forney as well, racking up four sacks to second quarter while allowing just 69 total yards in the opening half.
Quarterback Jason Shelley, who finished with 308 yards passing, also had a big second quarter with touchdown throws of 87 and 27 yards to Jrayton Fuksa (game-high 222 yards receiving) as Lone Star rolled to a 41-0 halftime lead.
The second half saw Lone Star continue to keep the pressure on, with Fuksa and Smith adding third quarter score to take a 55-0 lead heading to the fourth quarter.
Forney (8-4) had the final say on the scoreboard with a pair of late touchdowns, including a 25-yard touchdown catch by Malik Woods and a 22-yard run by Luke Skipper as time expired.
Skipper finished with 227 yards passing and two touchdowns, while Woods added 115 yards receiving on five catches.