Friday Night Five: Two state champions are out, and those weren't the only stunners

[caption id="attachment_20461" align="alignright" width="300"]Photo by Will Leverett Photo by Will Leverett[/caption] Tonight’s Friday Night Five may have been the easiest of the year because there were five results that stood out above the rest. Southlake Carroll 37, Cedar Hill 33 Well, we knew someone had to lose this one, effectively knocking out a state title game-level team, but how it unfolded was sort of surprising. Dragons head coach Hal Wasson said afterward that he’s loved how his team has improved over the season, and it showed from the outset as Carroll jumped out to a 14-0 lead on the Longhorns. And while Cedar Hill made its second half run, Carroll found a way to hold on and move on. Their reward? An area round date with Denton Guyer. Not much of a reward for knocking out the defending state champions in the first round. Hallsville 24, Ennis 23 Speaking of defending state champions out in the first round, Ennis’s season is over after this stunner. Not a full year removed from upsetting Cedar Park in the title game, Ennis watched as Alec Acuna kicked a 24-yard field goal with 55 seconds left to all but end the Lions’ title defense bid. South Grand Prairie 24, Euless Trinity 21 Tied 21-21, the Trojans opted for an onside kick to ride the momentum and put the game away. In retrospect, it wasn’t a risk that was calculated particularly well. Sometimes in that situation it’s better to hold serve and lean on experience and talent. It all fell apart as a result, with Jose Cruz hitting a 32-yard field goal as time expired to stun the Trojans. Tolar 41, Mart 35 Region II in Class 2A DI might as well be called the Mart region. Well, it might as well have been called the Mart region. Tolar delivered the result of the night in the small school ranks, and it took an epic goal line stand, denying Tyrek Horne at the goal line on the game’s final play. It was the first time since 2007 that Mart fell in the opening round, and the first time since 2009 that Mart will fail to make – at minimum – a state semifinals appearance. Brownwood 29, Graham 26 No team is as used to close call heartbreak this season as Graham. The Steers entered their rematch with Brownwood with three losses by six points or less, and walked into the offseason thanks to a fourth. It was a far more subdued affair than the first game this season, which saw the Lions win 59-53. Bonus: Smithson Valley 17, San Antonio Reagan 7 Kellen Mond’s junior season ends against a Rangers program that knows the roads to success in the playoffs like the wrinkles on the back of their knuckles. Close call of the night: Gilmer 40, Texarkana Pleasant Grove 36 Not a great start to the Buckeyes’ title defense, but it could just as easily serve as a springboard. In either case, a spirited shot by the Hawks, who nearly joined some impressive company as a wrecking ball on the craziest opening Friday most of us can remember.