Friday, May 3, 2024
A pair of Gatesville Hornets football standouts earned spots on the Texas Sports Writers Association/Blue Bell Class 4A All-State Team released on Feb. 8.
Senior Kyle Shafer and junior Lawson Mooney each made the honorable mention list on the annual team. The duo helped lead the Hornets to a 7-3 record and a third-straight playoff appearance.
Mooney — a junior listed as a 5-9 linebacker and free safety — added another superlative to an already lengthy list. In addition to being the District 11-4A Defensive Player Of The Year award for 2022, he was a First Team All-District selection in District 6-4A in 2021 and was named the Defensive Newcomer of the Year in 2020.
In 2022 he had a remarkable 161 tackles including six for a loss he also had a pair of interceptions, four pass breakups, and a quarterback sack on the defensive side. He scored a receiving touchdown in the Hornets season opener.
Shafer who filled the Hornets tight end role, finished tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns with six and added a pair of two-point conversion catches as well. None was bigger than his touchdown reception and two-point conversion catch with 22 seconds left to push the Hornets past Taylor in the season opener. He had 25 catches for 324 yards in all for the season.
It’s the second consecutive year the Hornets have placed a player on the TSWA/Blue Bell team. A year ago, Hayden Mooney made the honorable mention list for the 2021 season after setting a single-season record for tackles in a season with 209.
