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In another thrilling showdown between the two rivals, Dripping Springs couldn’t overcome four turnovers, two of which led to 14 points, as the Tigers fell to the Austin Vandegrift Vipers 27-20.
The Vipers win the 6A Division II Region IV title while the Tigers finish the season at 12-2 in thrilling rematch of this year’s season opener.
“I'm really proud of our guys,” Head Coach Galen Zimmerman said. ”They battled today. You just can't turn the ball over three times. You can't do those things in big games but our kids fought and gave ourselves a chance. [But against] really good programs this far in the playoffs you just can't turn the ball over.”
Ian French made a 40-yard field goal for the Tigers to put Dripping Springs up 3-0 on Vandegrift.
The Vipers answered back with a touchdown drive, scoring from the four-yard line. The Tigers tipped the extra point kick to force a miss as Vandegrift led 6-3.
Forcing a Tigers punt, the Vipers scored again on a quarterback sneak from the one-yard line, putting Dripping Springs down 13-6.
Disaster struck for the Tigers as Vipers made the interception before converting the turnover into points on a six-yard touchdown run, putting Dripping Springs behind 20-3.
The Tigers were able to score one more time before half as French made a 51-yard field goal, cutting into the deficit at 20-6.
“In a game like this, every point matters,” Zimmerman said. “You need points when you get opportunities. When we got to a certain point, we felt comfortable putting [French] out there.”
The Tiger defense stuffed the Vipers on fourth down during Vandegrift’s first drive of the second half. Dripping Springs took advantage of the fourth down stop as junior quarterback Chase Ames hit senior Merrik Bloomgren for a 32-yard touchdown pass, cutting the Viper lead down to 20-13.
The Tigers made another stop on defense to force another punt as the Dripping Springs got to rolling. Ames hit Bloomgren for a 53-yard pass, advancing to inside Viper territory. But a false start penalty combined with a missed goal allowed Vandegrift to keep Dripping Springs off the scoreboard.
The Tiger defense forced another punt but disaster struck on Dripping Springs next offensive drive.
The Vipers forced the fumble and recovered the ball inside the Tigers 10-yard line. Vandegrift later scored on a four-yard touchdown pass, putting the Vipers up 27-13 in the fourth quarter.
However, the Tigers didn’t give up.
With the ball at their own 20-yard line, the Tigers drove the ball past midfield before Ames hit James Montegomery for a 48-yard touchdown pass to make it a one-possesion game at 27-20.
The Tiger defense forced another punt with less than two minutes in the game but the Vipers downed the ball at the Dripping Springs one-yard.
Dripping Springs made one last attempt to tie the game but the Vipers stopped the Tigers lateral trick play to seal the win.
