Westlake football coach Tony Salazar has hailed the Chaparrals receiver depth on multiple occasions this season, claiming the team has five or six quality players at the position. While potentially true, the trio of Braden Riddell, Rhett Jenkins and Nash Chapman accounted for almost 70% of the team’s receiving yards in the regular season.
In the first half of the Chaps’ bi-district game Thursday against Hays, a pair of receivers showed why the veteran coach is bullish on the team’s pass-catching options. Caden Berry and Gabe Quanstrom – two players who combined for just 22 catches in the regular season – hauled in two touchdown passes each as the Class 6A Division II Region IV favorites cruised to a 45-0 win Thursday at Chaparral Stadium.
Westlake running backs Isaiah Mills and Cooper Jones celebrate a touchdown in the first quarter as the Westlake Chaparrals play the Cedar Ridge Raiders at Westlake High School, Oct. 30, 2026. (Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman)
“Both those guys, they got tremendous size and athletic ability,” Salazar said moments after his team advanced to 10-1. “Obviously they were open and our quarterback did a good job of getting them the football, and they did the rest; they ran it in with their legs and did some really good things.”
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Receivers help Chaps race out to a big lead
Berry, a 6-foot-4 senior, hauled in his first touchdown with 3 minutes, 31 seconds left in the first quarter against Hays, which went 6-4 in the regular season. He ran about 5 yards, momentarily stopped, then swiped past the corner marking him. Berry then caught a pass in stride and ran to the end zone for a 69-yard score to put Westlake up 14. Berry caught a 16-yard touchdown on Westlake’s next drive.
The big-bodied receiver entered the game against Hays with 14 catches for 178 yards and three touchdowns on the season. He added three catches, 101 yards and two scores to his total Thursday.
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For Berry, this was the perfect outcome for his final home game.
“This feels great,” he told the American-Statesman. “It’s just a dream to come out here with the people I love – my teammates – and just put on a great performance in front of the home crowd.”
Quanstrom, similarly, has not been a feature piece of the Westlake offense. He recorded eight catches for 119 yards and never crossed the goal line during the regular season. He caught an 9-yard touchdown pass for his first varsity score less than two minutes into the second quarter.
Then, as Westlake faced third-and-11 with 2:30 left in the first half, Patton Jones dropped back and found Quanstrom, who outran the defense for a 48-yard touchdown. The junior finished with two catches for 57 yards.
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“It was super fun. Getting my first two (touchdowns) in a big game like this, it matters,” he said. “We’re not guaranteed next week. (We’re) just trying to get to that next week, keep playing as long as we can.”
Westlake running back Cooper Jones celebrates a touchdown in the first quarter as the Westlake Chaparrals play the Cedar Ridge Raiders at Westlake High School, Oct. 30, 2026. (Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman)
Joneses, defense have big games
Berry and Quanstrom were far from the only stars for Westlake, which took a 42-0 lead into halftime.
Jones, the team’s quarterback, completed 8-of-11 passes for 225 yards, five touchdowns and an interception. He also ran for 40 yards. The senior has now tossed 24 touchdowns against four picks. Freshman running back Cooper Jones accounted for 67 yards and two touchdowns. He ran for a 4-yard touchdown in the first quarter and added a 20-yard receiving score in the second.
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Defensively, the Chaps didn’t allow Hays to run a play past midfield until late in the first half. Defensive back Mateus Teixeira forced a fumble in the second quarter that was recovered by Collin McClune.
When the hosts emerged for the third quarter, Salazar turned the game over to the backups. The only second-half points came via an Anton Kopp field goal.
“Our football team showed up in all three phases; what we’ve been doing, feeding off each other,” Salazar said. “Defense getting stops, punt returns setting up short fields, and then offense continuing to be productive and explosive. So, heck of a start to the playoffs for our football team.”
Westlake takes the field ahead of the Chaparrals’ game against the Cedar Ridge Raiders at Westlake High School, Oct. 30, 2026. (Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman)
‘A special team’
Moments after the contest concluded, Salazar, holding Westlake’s first gold ball of the postseason, gave a speech to his players.
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“This is a special team,” he said to the Chaps clad in blue in front of him. “We know what we have.”
Westlake will face a San Antonio team on neutral ground in the area round next week. The Chaps will be the expected winner as they take on either 6-4 Pieper or 4-6 Churchill.
This article originally published at Westlake football flashes depth as 2 new standouts emerge in playoff win over Hays.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
