The game between Stratford and Tomball began with an explosive 103-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Stratford's Johnathan Joseph Jr., giving Stratford an early lead. However, Tomball seized control, building a 28-6 advantage before seeing Stratford fight back with determination, narrowing the gap to 28-21 by halftime. Stratford started its comeback with a 10-play drive that ended with an Aaron DeLeon pass to Hunter Biehl for 24 yards to bring the score to 28-13. The defense forced a three-and-out, giving the ball back to the offense with just under two minutes to play in the half. DeLeon found Biehl again on a similar-looking pass for 36 yards to climb with 7 going into halftime.

Tomball took the opening drive of the second half down for a score after converting a fake punt. The teams would trade off turnovers before Stratford answered with an Anderson Dinh reverse that saw Dinh run through a wall of tacklers to hit paydirt. Tomball would answer with its own five-play drive to extend the lead back to two touchdowns at 41-27. Biehl would have none of it, and answered with his own 80-yard kickoff return where he would run through a few Tomball tacklers before turning on the jets to pull the game back to a one-score game at 41-33. The Stratford defense would make short work of Tomball on the next series with an interception by Parker Johnson that he would return 36 yards, giving the offense the ball around midfield. Stratford’s Javier Denson would answer the call with a 16-yard rushing touchdown to make the score 41-39. The defense would give the offense one last chance to take the lead after a forced fumble by Rayce Young that was recovered by Johnson as Tomball was attempting to run out the clock. Stratford was unable to convert a 4th and 5 in Tomball’s territory, turning the ball over on downs. Stratford outplayed Tomball in the second half but struggles with converting point-after attempts ultimately proved costly. Despite their efforts, Stratford fell just short, losing a close game to Tomball, 41-39.

Quarterback Aaron DeLeon led Stratford's offense with a dynamic performance, throwing for 186 yards and 2 touchdowns and rushing for 104 yards on 8 carries. Javier Denson added 135 rushing yards and a touchdown on 22 carries, along with 3 receptions for 65 yards. Hunter Biehl made his impact felt with 5 receptions for 87 yards and 2 touchdowns, adding another touchdown on his 80-yard kickoff return.

Defensively, Parker Johnson was a standout, making 10 tackles, intercepting a pass, and recovering a fumble. Rayden Barnes contributed 8 tackles, and Teirgan Burl added 6.5 tackles.

This week: Stratford travels to Conroe Thursday (9/5) to take on Conroe Oak Ridge at Woodforest Bank Stadium at 7 pm. Let’s show the home team how Stratford travels. See you there!

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