Westlake (13-1) added another win to their already impressive resume last Saturday, defeating Humble Atascocita (12-2) 49-28 in a Division 6A State Quarterfinal playoff. Along with the win, two of Westlake’s players rewrote the school’s history book. In the first half, senior Reed Klubnik became Westlake’s all-time leading receiver, passing Ryan Read to become the first Chap to eclipse the 2000-yard receiving mark.

On top of that, captain junior Sam Ehlinger finished the game with 5,678 career passing yards, overtaking Nick Foles, the current starter for the St. Louis Rams of the NFL. In their record- breaking performances, Sam and Reed both put up huge numbers. Sam had his hand in all seven touchdowns, throwing for five and running for two more. He finished the day with 258 passing yards and 169 rushing yards. Reed hauled in seven catches for 146 yards, scoring on two of them. Not only did he contribute to the offense, but he also came up with a blocked punt, which he recovered deep in Atascocita territory.

With the victory, Westlake moves on to their second Semi-Final appearance in four years. The Chaps will meet their toughest opponent of the season, the Allen Eagles (14-0). In the past four years, Allen has accumulated 57 consecutive wins, nine short of the Texas state record. Led by offensive tackle Allen senior Greg Little, the number two rated player in the nation, the Eagles look to keep their streak intact.

But Westlake isn’t afraid of the competition; in fact, they welcome it. After the Atascocita game, Westlake was chanting, “We want Allen!” in the locker room. And despite those 57 consecutive wins, the Chaps try to look more at Allen’s flaws than their strengths.

“We can’t go in there thinking, ‘They’re 57-0,’” captain senior Mack Kelley said. “Several teams have played them closely. A six-loss De Soto team lost to them 14-13 on a missed extra point. So it’s not a question of can we play them closely, but can we finish the game like no other team has, and we know that we’re fully capable of that.”

The Chaps won’t have to wait long to test that bravado. They face Allen at 1 p.m Dec.12 in Baylor’s McLane Stadium.