Friendswood turns tables on La Marque

Over the years, Friendswood has had its fair share of struggles with La Marque. The same could be said for many teams. From the early 1990s through 2006, the Cougars were a perennial power; a team that contended for state championships annually.

But in recent years, the tables have turned and Friendswood has benefited. On Friday, the Mustangs beat La Marque for the third straight season, winning a 55-41 shootout with the resurgent Cougars at La Marque's Etheredge Stadium.

The win puts Friendswood (7-0, 3-0 District 24-4A) in prime position to win its district for the second time in three years. But its three game win streak over La Marque is quite a reversal of fortune. Before 2008, La Marque beat Friendswood six straight times and in 15 of their previous 16 meetings.

"It does feel good because I've taken some (butt) whippings down here," Friendswood coach Steve Van Meter said. "I can promise you that."

As the score indicated, offense was everywhere to be found. The teams combined for more than 1,000 offensive yards and even though Friendswood took a three-touchdown lead at one point, La Marque (5-1, 2-1) showed its moxie behind running back Tim Wright (24 carries, 193 yards), fighting back to pull to within a touchdown on two different occasions.

Friendswood utilized its own running back, Jonathan Johnson (30 carries, 224 yards) and also got a big time effort from sophomore safety Jordan Wood, who collected three interceptions, including one in the fourth quarter that ended La Marque's best chance to tie the game.

LASCO RETURNS, THE WOODLANDS PREVAILS
In a battle of state-ranked teams and what was the Houston area's game of the week, The Woodlands defeated Lufkin 49-33 before a sellout crowd at Woodforest Bank Stadium. The win also marked the return of Woodlands running back and California commitment Daniel Lasco to the lineup. Lasco, who sprained his ankle in the Highlanders' season-opening win over Monterrey Tech, missed four games with the injury but tallied 161 rushing yards and two touchdowns in his return. The Highlanders (6-0, 2-0 in District 14-5A) remained undefeated and the win was their second straight over Lufkin, a team that had their number throughout most of the last decade.

KLEIN COLLINS ROUTS TOMBALL
In what looked to be a statement win, Klein Collins (Spring) won a battle of unbeatens with Tomball (5-1) in convincing fashion, 42-0. The Tigers, who are 6-0 and have won 16 straight regular season games dating back to last season, held the Cougars to just 58 yards of offense and forced Tomball into seven three-and-outs. It was Tomball's first loss of the season in what has otherwise been a benchmark season.

NORTH SHORE GETS REDEMPTION
In a rematch of a game that seemed to turn the tide of their season a year ago, the North Shore (Houston) Mustangs (5-1) traveled to Port Arthur and came out with a 35-28 win over the Memorial Titans to mark the Mustangs' fifth straight win. Last season, Port Arthur Memorial beat North Shore 7-6, stopping North Shore's 52-game district winning streak. On Friday, North Shore jumped out to a 28-7 lead before Memorial rallied to tie the game, but quarterback Keenon Gibson found Chris Dever for an 11-yard touchdown pass for the deciding score with 4:08 remaining.

UIL COULD PASS NEW CONCUSSION POLICIES
The University Interscholastic League announced on Tuesday that modifications to its current concussion protocol have been recommended and could be approved on Monday. The UIL will have its bi-annual legislative council meetings Sunday and Monday and could take action then. The UIL's medical advisory committee recommended several revisions to the current policy, including extending the amount of time an athlete must stay out of action after suffering a concussion from 15 minutes to at least one day.

TOP PERFORMERS
* Quandre Diggs, Angleton: The senior quarterback/defensive back had 248 all-purpose yards, a touchdown, two interceptions, two pass breakups and a forced fumble in a 24-14 win over Terry. Diggs returned a punt 89 yards for a touchdown and also had three tackles on defense.

* Brian Gohlke, College Park (The Woodlands): The senior finished second in the elite boys division of the Nike South Invitational cross country meet with a 5,000-meter time of 15 minutes, 23.9 seconds.

* Howard Matthews, Clear Springs (League City): The senior running back compiled 310 all-purpose yards in a 46-13 win over Clear Brook. Matthews had six carries for 100 yards and a touchdown, eight catches for 145 yards, and a 65-yard touchdown pass.

LOOKING AHEAD
It's another big week for football matchups in Greater Houston. Among the best matchups:

* Klein vs. Klein Collins, 7 p.m. Friday, Klein Memorial Stadium: Both teams are ranked in the area's Top 10 and are 6-0. The winner could eventually prove to be the District 13-5A champion.

* Clear Creek at Pearland, 7 p.m. Friday, The Rig: Two explosive offensive teams square off. Clear Creek is 5-1; Pearland is 6-0.

* Montgomery at Brenham, 7:30 p.m. Friday, Cub Stadium: Definitely will be the district title game in 17-4A. Both teams ARE undefeated at 6-0, and the teams played a close one last year.

* West Brook (Beaumont) vs. North Shore, 7 p.m. Friday, Galena Park ISD Stadium: West Brook beat North Shore last year at home for the district title. Now the Bruins must travel. Both teams have one loss, and both came to Katy.

* La Marque at Texas City, 7 p.m. Friday, Stingaree Stadium: It's one of the area's best rivalries, dubbed the "Battle by the Bay." La Marque leads the all-time series 30-18-3 but Texas City won last season. Both teams have just one district loss, so the game has playoff implications.

RECRUITING NEWS
One of the area's top basketball players in the Class of 2011, Fort Bend Dulles (Sugar Land) guard D'Angelo Harrison, is set to announce his commitment on Thursday. Harrison, who was the District 23-5A most valuable player last season, averaged 20.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and shot 49 percent from the field last season. His finalists are Baylor, Marquette, Oklahoma State and St. John’s.

Sam Khan Jr. is a reporter who covers Greater Houston area high school sports for the Houston Chronicle. You can reach him at sam.khan@chron.com or follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/skhanjr. You can also join him, Jenny Dial and other writers from around the state in a weekly high school football chat at noon on Wednesdays at www.chron.com/hs.