Wise County on the Web

Commerce 41, Bridgeport 28 (December 15, 2001)

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final
Bridgeport	0	14	14	0	28
Commerce	7	20	6	8	41

How they scored:
C - Antonio Burrell 60 yard pass from Shawn Droddy, XP
C - Droddy 22 yard run, XP
C - Tommy Wright 26 yard run, XP
B - Ramey Herrera 7 yard pass from Phillip Daugherty, XP
C - Ryan Coffey 51 yard run, XP
B - Joseph Krebs 21 yard pass from Daugherty, XP
C - Eddie Hines 1 yard run, XP
B - Herrera 62 yard pass from Daugherty, Xp
C - Droddy 34 yard run, XP

From The Dallas Morning News:
BEDFORD--Commerce and Bridgeport made a fast game of their Class 3A state semifinal. Fast to the corners, fast in pursuit, fast to put numbers on the scoreboard.In the end, Commerce won the race to gain its second Division II state final in three years with a 41-28 win over Bridgeport before 7,800 at Pennington Field. Commerce (13-2), the 1999 Division II champion, will face the Giddings-La Grange winner for the state title next weekend at a time and site to be determined.Commerce head coach Terry Cron will coach in his second consecutive state title game after taking Mart to the Class 2A Division II title game last year. A win there will make Cron the first coach in state history to win a state title in three classifications. He coached Bartlett to the Class A title in 1992.Bridgeport (9-6) quarterback Phillip Daugherty found plenty of holes in Commerce’s defense to bring his team back from a 21-0 deficit. The junior’s 4,280 yards already marked the single-season Class 3A state record. He closed the season with 383 more on a 26-for-51 effort with four touchdowns and one interception on his 51st attempt.But just as often, Commerce’s defensive line chased him out of the pocket, sacking him seven times and leaving Bridgeport with minus-26 r ushing yards.Daugherty’s 7-yard touchdown completion to his favorite target, Joseph Krebs, brought Bridgeport to within 33-28 at the end of the third quarter. Krebs finished with 12 receptions for 186 yards and two touchdowns. Ramey Herrera added another 8 for 146 yards and two touchdowns, including a 62-yard touchdown on a one-handed snag on a crossing route to give Bridgeport the early second-half momentum.But just as it did against Gladewater a week ago, Commerce responded when its lead was challenged. Tommy Wright, who came in with 2,100 yards, swept wide for 27 yards to start the drive. He would finish with 165. An offsides call on a short third down kept it alive. Quarterback Shawn Droddy then kept off the left corner and used a downfield block by Eddie Hines to spring a 34-yard touchdown scamper.Commerce scored on its first or second possessions in its past three games. It did it again here, lulling Bridgeport in with short passes and outside pitches only to break out with a 60-yard post to Antonio Burrell on its seventh play.Bridgeport showed its game plan on the first drive, throwing for 50 yards on a 13-play drive that stalled at the Commerce 24. Droddy closed a 76-yard drive with a 22-yard scamper. A sack by Commerce’s Chad Hunter pinned Bridgeport at its 4, and a short punt set up its 21-0 lead.