The 2024 season came to a screeching halt for the Houston High School football team Friday night in Mountain View, as the Tigers fell to Liberty, 42-0, in the semifinals of the Class 2 District 4 Tournament.
The two teams battled through a back-and-forth first half that concluded with the host Eagles leading 6-0.
But second-seeded Liberty took control after the break, scoring 3 touchdowns in the third quarter and 2 in the fourth, while not allowing sixth-seeded Houston to get on the board.
The second-half collapse began on the kickoff. After deferring on the opening kick, Houston received to begin the half. But the ball landed near the Houston 30-yard line and went untouched by the Tigers, and the Eagles pounced on it to gain possession.
A short time later, Liberty capitalized with a 2-yard touchdown run by senior quarterback Gavin Reese to lead 12-0.
Before the third quarter was over, the Eagles went on to score touchdowns on a 34-yard pass play and a 61-yard run by Reese.
Leading 28-0 going into the fourth quarter, Liberty added TDs on a 91-yard run by Reese and a 2-yard run by junior Jaren Rutledge.
Houston’s Big Red Defense worked hard throughout the game, keeping things close in the first half as the Tigers’ offense picked up only 1 first down and turned the ball over once, and the Eagles’ offense spent plenty of time on the field.
With the shutout victory, Liberty held the Tigers scoreless for 8 straight quarters after winning 6-0 in a South Central Association conference contest Oct. 26 in Houston (thanks to a touchdown on the final play of the contest). The Eagles have blanked their opponent in 5 of their last 7 games.
The Tigers finished the season with an overall record of 6-5 and went 3-4 in SCA play.
In a matchup of Eagles vs. Eagles, Liberty (9-2) will travel to top-seeded Fair Grove (11-0) next Friday (Nov. 15) for the district championship game. Fair Grove (No. 1 in the latest Class 2 state rankings) downed Thayer 48-26 in the other semifinal.
Liberty was No. 9 in the latest Class 2 poll.
