Vanguard drops TAPPS state title game
WACO, Texas (KWTX) - A remarkable year for Vanguard football ended in defeat after the Vikings dropped the TAPPS 6-Man Div. 1 state title game to Pasadena First Baptist Christian, 54-18.
After Vanguard was down just 16-12 at halftime, First Baptist Christian returned the opening second half kickoff for a quick score. They’d later score 24 total unanswered points in the half while holding Vanguard to just six points in the final two quarters.
For a Vanguard team that went 0-7 and forced to forfeit their final three games in 2022 due to injuries, the program has come a long way in the last three years, especially with second year head coach Brad Schupbach who was extremely proud of his team’s year.
“I believed in them from the first time I met them,” said Schupbach. “I told them ‘we can get here.’ They were confident, but at the end of the day, it was just about those little things happening that snowballed for a team that hadn’t been here before, so it hurts a lot.”
The state championship appearance marks the school’s first since the program’s inception in 2011.
The Vikings finished the season with an overall record of 11-3, winning five of their last six games.
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