SAN ANTONIO — Sharyland Pioneer went down swinging in the fourth round of the playoffs as the Diamond-backs dropped a 56-53 heartbreaker to Liberty Hill in the Class 5A Division II Region IV final Saturday at Heroes Stadium.
“Our kids fight all the way until the end. Just one or two plays here or there was the difference,” Pioneer head coach Tom Lee said. “We felt like we had a couple bad calls there, but that’s football. That’s part of it. We had chances to make plays and they made one more than we did and got the victory. I’m proud of my kids the way they represented the Valley with class. We went out fighting tonight, and I can’t thank the fans that came, not just from Sharyland and Mission, but from the entire Rio Grande Valley.”
Both Sharyland Pioneer and Liberty Hill entered Saturday’s fourth-round showdown averaging more than 50 points scored per game. On Saturday, they combined for more than 1,300 total yards.
Trailing 35-27 at the half, the Diamondbacks needed something to break their way.
That came later during the third quarter, as Pioneer scored a touchdown and recovered the ensuing on-side kick. A few players later, the Diamondbacks were in the end zone again, as Pioneer quarterback Eddie Lee Marburger hit Gavin De La Garza deep for a 45-yard touchdown to make it a 42-41 game midway through the third quarter.
Liberty Hill then coughed up the ball on its next drive, giving it back to the Diamondbacks with the chance to take a lead. Pioneer proceeded to drive into Liberty Hill territory, but a 28-yard D-Backs field goal attempt was blocked.
The Diamondbacks continued to fight, as Marburger threw his sixth touchdown pass of the night to Tristan Castillo to make it a three-point game with 2:57 left on the clock. But Liberty Hill recovered the onside kick and picked up two first downs to put the game on ice.
Marburger put on a show, as he finished with 464 passing yards, 116 rushing yards and eight total touchdowns against Liberty Hill. Marburger, a UTSA signee, finishes his high school career as the Valley’s all-time leader in touchdown passes with 103.
“He’s a great kid, he’s going to have a great, great future and you’re going to be reading about him at the college level and maybe even down the road at the professional level. What a leader, someone that works hard all the time, someone that you want at the top of your program,” Lee said of Marburger. “If he’s not the best quarterback, people are wrong. What he did tonight, what he’s done all year and what he did last year, he cemented his own legacy down here in the Valley.”
| Pioneer’s Eddie Lee Marburger walks off the field in the winding moments of the game against Liberty Hill at Heroes Stadium on Saturday Jan.02,2021 in San Antonio, Texas. TMarburger threw an interception in the endzone. Photo by Delcia Lopez/The Monitor | [email protected] delcia lopez |
After leaving it all on the field against Liberty Hill, as he has every game of his high school career, Marburger credited the Lord and his teammates.
“First off, I want to give all the glory to my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I play for him, and I play for my teammates, for my O-line, my running backs, receivers and my defense, I love each and every single one of them,” Marburger said. “My O-line to my running backs and receivers, they played a hell of a game tonight, we just came up short.”
Pioneer’s Castillo had 11 catches for 105 yards, 71 yards rushing and three touchdowns, while Joseph Graham Jr. added 11 catches for 187 yards and one score. Mike Ramos Jr. and De La Garza also came through with touchdown catches to keep Pioneer within striking distance.
Sharyland Pioneer finishes its season with an 8-1 overall record. It was also District 16-5A Division II champions. The Diamondbacks were also just the eighth team from the RGV to advance to the fourth round of the playoffs since 1990.
“What an amazing season we had. Obviously, we wanted to be in the final four, we felt we were good enough to get there, but we just came up three points short tonight,” Lee said.