AUBREY - On a wet, rainy and sloppy Friday night, it was Aubrey's defense that held back Liberty Christian's offensive surges in key situations.
In the second quarter, Liberty's offense got going behind the three-headed running attack of Miles Smith, Ben Hawkins and Camron Cornett. On two separate occasions, Liberty moved it inside Aubrey's 10-yard line.
On both occasions, Liberty was unable to find its way into the end zone.
Aubrey held off a late comeback by Liberty for a 16-8 home victory, handing the Warriors their first loss of the season.
Liberty coach Greg Price said the two drives at the end of the first half was the turning point in the game.
"We wasted way too many opportunities to score, and I take full responsibility for that," Price said.
Prior to Friday night's game, Liberty averaged 36.5 points per game. Playing in wet conditions, the Warriors struggled against Aubrey's defense, scoring its first points of the game with 6:37 remaining in the game.
Liberty quarterback Josh Cousins barreled his way into the end zone on a fourth-and-goal from the Aubrey 1, cutting Aubrey's advantage to eight.
Following the score, the Warriors had two more chances to tie the score, but any chances of a miraculous comeback were cut short by an interception by Aubrey's Colton Kelly with 58 seconds remaining in the game.
Cousins went 8-for-18 for 120 yards and two interceptions, both of which came at the end of each respective half. Aubrey was anchored by Albert Silva, who rushed for 110 yards on 26 carries.
Aubrey coach G.A. Moore was pleased with his squad's defense effort, but was more pleased with the way his team stepped up in critical situations.
"We've been trying to get people to come up and make big plays, and Colton Kelly, you can't get any bigger than that one when he made the interception," Moore said. "That's what we were talking about on the sidelines."
Aubrey (2-1) faces a tough Grandview squad next week, while Liberty Christian (2-1) looks to rebound next week when it opens district play against Fort Worth Nolan.
"It's a good wake-up call right before district," Price said. "It's what you hope, that you go out there, lose one and make it a learning experience, and go into district knowing that you can be defeated.
"Maybe you keep that fresh in your mind, and work harder in practice, and you go out there and fight a little bit harder on Friday night."
Aubrey 16, Liberty Christian 8
Liberty 0 0 0 8 - 8
Aubrey 0 9 7 0 - 16
Scoring summary
AUB - Josh Giles 26 FG
AUB - Michael Kister 11 pass from Skyler Starling (conversion failed)
AUB - Skyler Starling 1 run (Josh Giles kick)
ALC - Josh Cousins 1 run (Josh Cousins pass from Tim
Douglass)
Team statistics
LC AUB
First Downs 13 11
Rushing Yards 39-137 45-151
Passing Yards 120 49
Passing 8-18-2 5-8-1
Punts-Avg 2-28.50 3-37.00
Penalties 5-28 1-12
Fumbles-Lost 4-3 1-0
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing - ALC: Miles Smith 18-55, JonAaron Howell 3-36, Ben Hawkins 9-29, Camron Cornett 6-29, Josh Cousins 3--12, AUB: Albert Silva 26-110, Charlie Radford 4-18, Skyler Starling 9-12, Robert DeLaTorre 2-5, Dexter Loza 1-3, Colton Kelly 2-3, Stat Team 1-0.
Passing - ALC: Josh Cousins 8-18-2-120, AUB: Skyler Starling 5-8-1-49.
Receiving - ALC: Daniel Loch 2-52, Kyle Metzger 1-29, Mitchell Rowsell 2-22, Miles Smith 1-8, Dylan Sprock 1-6, Tim Douglass 1-3, AUB: Michael Kister 3-39, Albert Silva 1-6, Charlie Radford 1-4.
