North Shore’s Zach Evans is carrying the load. Photo by Jimme Aggison
Originally appeared on Vype.com.
Coming into the North Shore versus Lamar game, the million-dollar question was if North Shore's new school players could handle the old school veteran players of Lamar.
North Shore’s horsepower comes from their freshman quarterback Dematrius Davis and their sophomore running back Zach Evans, while for Lamar, their weapons happen to be seniors who are heavily recruited by D1 colleges.
However, D1 recruited or not, the youngsters from the Mustangs showed that they weren’t fazed by Lamar’s heavily recruited talent as they led North Shore to a 44-29 victory.
The first half was a blowout.
The Mustang’s senior linebacker Jacoby Allen caught a pick 6 off Lamar’s Ty Holden that kick-started North Shore’s dominant first half.
Immediately following the pick, Lamar turned the ball over as they fumbled on a kickoff return.
North Shore would capitalize again, as they took a 14-0 lead off an Evans two-yard touchdown run.
The Mustangs next two scores came from freshmen quarterback Davis who connected with senior receiver Jaylen Lewis for a 15-yard touchdown pass.
Evans, the running back for North Shore would score again and make the score 28-0 in the second quarter.
Though Lamar started off shooting themselves in the foot, they got somewhat back on track with a 79-yard kick return for a touchdown by senior defensive back D’Shawn Jamison.
That allowed Lamar to end the half on a good note, even though they were still down 28-7 to North Shore.
Though the first half started out as a blowout, in the second half Lamar kept fighting.
Lamar forced North Shore into a fumble and Lamar recovered the fumble on North Shore’s 34-yard line.
Lamar tried to convert off the fumble but they would later give the ball back when North Shore’s senior defensive back Drevian Williams-Nelson picked off a Lamar pass in the back of the endzone.
The pick later set up Evans for another touchdown. Evans finished the game with four touchdowns and 174 yards rushing. His touchdown after the pick gave North Shore a 34-7 lead after their extra point was blocked.
All together Lamar gave up 21 points off turnovers, and the closest they came to coming back after their 28-0 deficit was in the fourth when they were down 44-29.
Despite the two interceptions, Lamar’s quarterback Holden accounted for three touchdown passes. He threw two to senior receiver Roderic Burns and another one to senior Al ‘Vonte Woodard, all were in the second half.
Holden’s touchdown pass to Woodard is what cut the deficit to 44-29. After that score, with about two minutes remaining in the game, Lamar kicked an onside kick and recovered it.
Lamar tried to continue their comeback, but a backwards pitch on a run-option was deflected and caused another fumble for Lamar. North Shore recovered the fumble and put an end to Lamar’s hopes for a comeback.
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With the Astros now officially ten games under .500 for the season, manager Joe Espada is taking a lot of heat from the fanbase for the team's struggles.
While we don't agree with the sentiment, we even hear fans clamoring for the return of Dusty Baker and Martin Maldonado, thinking the Astros wouldn't be in this mess if they were still here.
Which is ridiculous. First of all, Maldonado has been awful for the White Sox, hitting .048 (even worse than Jose Abreu's .065). And for those of you that think his work with the pitching staff justifies his pathetic offense. Let me say this: Where was Maldy's game calling genius for Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Framber Valdez last year? All of them regressed significantly.
And as far as Baker is concerned, we have no idea how much a difference he would make, we can only speculate. Baker would also be dealing with a pitching staff ravaged with injuries. And let's not forget, Baker was the guy that refused to move Jose Abreu down in the batting order, even though he would finish the regular season with the ninth-worst OPS in baseball.
The reality of the situation is managers can only do so much in baseball. Which leads us to something else that needs to be considered. Is Espada being handcuffed by the front office? Espada and GM Dana Brown both said recently that Jon Singleton was going to get more at-bats while they give Abreu time off to try to figure things out. Yet, there Abreu was in the lineup again in the opening game of the Cubs series.
It makes us wonder how much power does Espada truly have? The Astros have some other options at first base. Yainer Diaz may only have eight games played at the position, but how much worse could he be than Abreu defensively? Abreu already has four errors, and Diaz is obviously a way better hitter. Victor Caratini isn't considered a plus offensive player, but his .276 batting average makes him look like Babe Ruth compared to Abreu. Let him catch more often and play Diaz at first. Starting Diaz at first more often could also lengthen his career long-term.
Maybe that's too wild of a move. Okay, fine. How about playing Mauricio Dubon at first base? I understand he doesn't have much experience at that position, but what's the downside of trying him there? If he can play shortstop, he can play first base. He's driving in runs at a higher rate (11 RBIs) than everyone on the team outside of Kyle Tucker and Yordan Alvarez. And he's producing like that as part-time player right now.
The other criticism we see of Espada is his use of Jon Singleton to pinch hit late in games. Let's be real, though, who else does Espada have on the roster to go to? Batting Abreu late in games in which you're trailing should be considered malpractice. Espada can only use who he has to work with. This all really stems from the Astros poor farm system.
They don't have anyone else to turn to. The draft picks the club lost from the sign-stealing scandal are really hurting them right now. First and second rounders from 2020 and 2021 should be helping you in 2024 at the big league level.
Maybe they go to Astros prospect Joey Loperfido soon, but after a hot start he has only two hits in his last six games.
Finally, we have to talk about what seems like a committee making baseball decisions. Lost in a committee is accountability. Who gets the blame for making poor decisions?
As time continues to pass it looks like moving on from former GM James Click was a massive mistake. He's the guy that didn't sign Abreu, but did trade Myles Straw (recently DFA'd) for Yainer Diaz and Phil Maton. He also built an elite bullpen without breaking the bank, and helped the club win a World Series in 2022.
The reality of the situation is Dusty Baker and James Click are not walking back through that door. And all good runs come to an end at some point. Is this what we're witnessing?
Don't miss the video above as we hit on all the points discussed and much more!
Catch Stone Cold 'Stros (an Astros podcast) with Charlie Pallilo, Brandon Strange, and Josh Jordan. We drop two episodes every week on SportsMapHouston's YouTube channel. You can also listen on Apple Podcast, Spotifyor wherever you get your podcasts.