Jose Astorga refused to take
any credit, even after racking
up 215 rushing yards and three
touchdowns in a Class 5A state
quarterfinal game.
And that’s just the way Douglas
County coach Jeff Ketron
likes it.
From the push of the offensive
line to the blocking of the
wide receivers, everybody contributed
to Douglas County’s
34-19 victory over previously
undefeated Thomas Jefferson
on Friday night at All-City Stadium.
“Jose is just one of those little
lightning bug guys. When he
sees a crease he’s gone,” Ketron
said. “But he’s right. It’s a
team effort, and I love him being
humble.”
Astorga touched the ball on
the first 12 plays for the Huskies
(10-2), who went up 10-0
just past the midway point of
the second quarter.
But Thomas Jefferson (11-1)
found some momentum when
quarterback Michael Mankoff
hit Billy Sprague in the flat.
Sprague turned up field, put a
defender to the turf with a
huge stiff arm and sprinted 67
yards for the score.
Another score with six seconds
remaining in the first half
sent the Spartans into halftime
with a 13-10 lead.
“We wanted a big play down
10-0. We just wanted something
to happen,” said Sprague,
a sophomore who had 13 catches
for 208 yards and two touchdowns.
Astorga took the second play
of the second half 62 yards
down the sideline to regain the
lead for Douglas County.
After the defense forced Thomas
Jefferson to punt, Astorga
did it again, this time from 24
yards out.
“There’s only one word for
that – the line, man,” Astorga
said. “I couldn’t ask for a better
line. The only reason why we
got those scores was because
of them.”
The Huskies scored 21 points
in the third quarter, the third
such one-quarter-scoring
binge in three playoff games.
The Spartans tried to hang
in, cutting the deficit to two
scores after Mankoff hit Sprague
for another touchdown
with 4:47 remaining.
Douglas County 3 7 21 3 – 34
Thomas Jefferson 0 13 0 6 – 19
DC – FG Romano 31. DC – Astorga 18 run
(Romano kick). TJ – Sprague 67 pass from
Mankoff (kick failed). TJ – Lowe 21 pass from
Mankoff (Allen kick). DC – Astorga 62 run (Romano
kick). DC – Astorga 24 run (Romano
kick). DC – Stevens 63 pass from Arnold (Romano
kick). TJ – Sprague 3 pass from Mankoff
(kick blocked).
