By Thomas Jones, Sports Editor

SAN ANTONIO – Perhaps a brilliant game plan against San Antonio Stevens’ zone-read offense keyed the best defensive effort of the year by Westlake. Possibly a series of subtle adjustments early in the game subdued a physical Falcons’ offensive line and helped the Chaps advance to the next round of the playoffs.

But then again, maybe the answer to Westlake’s dominant defensive effort in a 42-7 win in a Class 5A Region IV Division I area playoff game Saturday at the Alamodome was a little more simple.

“We hit them in the mouth, and they never responded,” Westlake defensive tackle David Durham said. “But that’s what happens when you come out strong and never let up.”

Westlake (8-4) didn’t let up the entire game while holding the Falcons (7-5) to 119 yards of total offense, the lowest tally by a Chap foe this season. Stevens’ lone score came on a kickoff return by Etauj Allen in the first quarter.

The offense matched that performance with 35 points and 268 of its 457 total yards in the first half. That showing looked particularly impressive viewed through the prism of Stevens’ first-round playoff game in which the Falcons held Converse Judson to 128 yards during an upset win.

But Westlake’s not Judson, and the Chaps showed no drop-off from their playoff-opening win over San Antonio Roosevelt.

According to Westlake coach Derek Long, the Chaps’ strong starts in the playoffs have resulted from splendid weeks of practice.

“You can talk about being ready to play all you want, but coming out and doing it is another thing,” he said. “Give these young men all the credit in the world, because they’re doing the mental work to prepare, and that shows when they step on the field.”

It may have seemed to the partisan Stevens crowd like Westlake scored the first time they stepped onto the turf, but it actually took four minutes for Louie Swope to race into the end zone on a 35-yard drive set up by a Bryce Hager fumble recovery. Less than four minutes later, Chap quarterback Tanner Price snuck into the end zone from a yard out for a 14-0 Westlake lead.

Although Stevens cut that lead in half with Allen’s 102-yard kickoff return, things looked ominous for the Falcons. Westlake had ripped off chunks of yardage with ease behind running back Ryan Swope, and Stevens had managed just six yards of offense on its first two drives against a Chap defensive front led by Durham, tackle Omar Ontiveros and tackle Sam Moore

Stevens never could reverse that trend. Swope sprinted in for a 9-yard touchdown run on the Chaps’ next possession and took a screen pass 54 yards for a score one drive later. 

Swope, who ran for 184 yards on 16 carries in the game, capped his brilliant first-half with 42-yard touchdown run through three potential Stevens’ tacklers. After receiver Matt Featherston ran eight yards for a Chap touchdown on the first possession of the second half, Swope strolled to the bench to a parade of hand slaps and congratulations.

“We ran the ball great, and that opened everything up,” said Price, who threw for 128 yards on 7-of-10 passing. “We weren’t going to take these guys lightly. We had a lot of energy right from the get-go.”

But it didn’t take Price long to credit the Chaps’ most impressive players. 

“ Our defense really stepped it up,” he said. “It’s stopping people, getting turnovers and helping us a lot to put points on the board.”

Stevens, which entered the game averaging 283 yards rushing a contest, did not have a run longer than 16 yards. Only three runs went further than 10 yards, and the Falcons lost yards on 10 carries. Quarterback Geoffrey Miles led Stevens in rushing this season with 944 yards and 16 touchdowns, but he had one yard on 13 carries against the Chaps.

When they did pass, the Falcons managed just 57 yards on 6-of-16 passing. Chase Womack picked off his team-leading sixth interception of the season. 

“Even when they hit a big play, we didn’t let that get us down,” Durham said. “We stayed strong the whole game.”

Westlake’s defense continued a promising trend. Since allowing 425.5 yards and 37 points per game through the first four games of the season, the Chaps have held foes to 18 points and 287 yards over the past eight weeks.

“We’ve been getting better and better,” Long said. “It’s the type of defense that we felt we would have at the start of the year.”