WESTLAKE 16 TWHS 5
Bryce Walker Leads All Scorers With 9 Points
Bryce Walker 4G, 5A STX #ManOfTheMatch
On Saturday morning in Austin, Notre Dame commit Bryce Walker, scored 4 goals and 5 assists to lead Westlake to a statement win over The Woodlands 16-5 at Calhoun Field on the campus of Anderson High School.
This match-up was highly anticipated as these two programs have had some absolute battles throughout the years. Last season was the first time Westlake was able to beat The Woodlands and Saturday was a match-up between the historically best programs that Houston and Austin have to offer. Westlake was 3-1 coming into the game with their only loss coming at the hands of Dallas Jesuit by 1 goal exactly a week prior. The Woodlands were 2-2 and looking to get on right side of the win column in Austin after taking losses to ESD and Jesuit.
For Westlake, their full complement of offensive weapons were on display on Saturday. Brayden Duncan had 3 goals on the day all coming in the first quarter. Cam Lynch, Ollie Lovell, and Will Hamlin each had 2 goals a piece for the Chaps in the win. Rounding out scoring for Westlake were Spencer Arnold, Damon Merkel, and Ethan Burke all with 1 goal a piece.
Duncan with the 1 Timer
From the first whistle, the Chaps were all gas and no breaks. The face-off battle between Sam Wadsworth (Westlake) and Grant Isika (The Woodlands) was excellent. 50/50 draws were plentiful, but Westlake’s athleticism was on full display as they applied pressure everywhere defensively and had the ball most of the game. Offensively, the Chaps were humming on all cylinders playing their fast and skilled brand and took a 6-1 lead at the end of the first quarter. Westlake continued their offensive blitzkrieg outscoring The Woodlands 4-0 in the second quarter to take a comfortable 10-1 lead into halftime.
The Woodlands would draw first blood in the 2nd half just 1:19 into the 3rd quarter. The back and forth continued and the game evened out with each team scoring twice in the 3rd to bring the score to 12-3 in Westlake’s favor headed into the 4th quarter. Westlake went on to outscore The Woodlands 4-2 in the final frame and walk away with the 16-5 win.
Offensively, the Highlanders were led by Dylan Binney’s 2nd half hat trick in the loss. Cade Kennedy rounded out the goal scoring for The Woodlands with 2 goals of his own. Matthew Nunes was another bright spot for the Highlanders on Saturday, but Westlake had the Woodlands’ defense chasing the ball for most of the morning which resulted in a lot of dunks inside.
Nunes Doing His Part
With the win Westlake improved to 4-1 on the season and had a quick turnaround before taking on Episcopal School of Dallas on Sunday in one of the best games we have seen all year. *Spoiler Alert* Westlake beat ESD to improve to 5-1 and we will have that game recap up shortly. The Chaps’ next game will be on Saturday in Austin against Memorial. The Woodlands responded well and took care of business on Sunday against Lake Travis in a game they won 6-5 to remain .500 on the season. The Highlanders will play their first home game of the season Tuesday night against Houston Christian before heading out to California for Spring Break.
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