Kadyn Leon catches fire, helps Lake Travis to 13-10 bi-district victory over Vandegrift

Kadyn Leon's dream of leading Lake Travis to playoff glory didn't follow the right script.

As the Cavaliers quarterback, he was supposed to be the next Garrett Gilbert or Baker Mayfield. The program's lineage also includes Todd Reesing, Michael Brewer and Charlie Brewer. But when he injured an ankle Oct. 20 against Dripping Springs, everything changed.

In Friday night's 13-10 bi-district playoff victory over Vandegrift at Monroe Stadium, no one played better than Leon, who lined up as a wide receiver. He caught 12 passes for 172 yards and scored his team's lone touchdown. Although his ankle is fully healed, he will continue to play receiver as long as the Cavaliers remain in the playoffs.

In a game that some will call an upset, the Cavaliers advanced to the area round when placekicker Braydon Doane hit a 35-yard field goal with one second left on a cool and drizzly night.

Lake Travis (9-2) will play San Antonio Johnson (10-1) in a Class 6A Division I area playoff game at 7 p.m. Friday at Bobcat Stadium in San Marcos.

Leon said he has had minimal experience as a receiver but has accepted his new role. Chaston Ditta, a junior who's 3-0 as a starter, was solid, passing for 205 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown strike to Leon late in the second quarter.

"Whatever the team asks me to do, I'm going to do it the best that I can," said Leon, who has multiple scholarship offers to play baseball in college.

Leon said his favorite memory from Friday's game is his touchdown catch because he did his "prime-time strut" after he crossed the goal line.

Lake Travis also received a big contribution from running back Nico Hamilton, who kept many drives alive as he scampered for 119 rushing yards. The defense was relentless as well, holding Vandegrift to 189 total yards. The Vipers entered Friday averaging 44 points a game.

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Lake Travis coach Hank Carter praised his entire team but did not seem surprised that Leon had such an outstanding game in a new position.

"That's the best athlete at our school," Carter said. "That guy can do everything. He did that tonight. With Chaston getting all the reps (at quarterback) the last two-plus weeks, we felt like the right thing to do was to keep him in there and let Kadyn affect other parts of the game."

Vandegrift, trailing 10-3 in the fourth quarter, tied the score when Deuce Adams connected with tight end Jase Skoglund for a 30-yard touchdown with 8:11 to play. The Cavaliers' defense deserves credit for containing Adams to 86 yards passing and 2022 Central Texas offensive player of the year Miles Coleman to 44 yards receiving.

Across the field, Vandegrift coach Drew Sanders gave credit to Lake Travis but admitted this was not his team's finest hour.

"It's always said whenever the season ends," Sanders said. "We'll have to start all over. ... I think we're better than we showed tonight. I'm proud of our seniors and I'm proud of our program and we'll have to find a way to rebound from this and come back and be stronger."

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Carter, meanwhile, said the culture of a team that has won six state championships since 2007 remains strong. The coach laughed when he was asked if being the "underdog" in the game was a factor.

"We're never the underdog," he said.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Was it an upset? Lake Travis looks like old self in win over Vipers