Houston Memorial Stays Unbeaten, Tops Alief Hastings 34-17

Staying perfect is never easy, but Houston Memorial made a strong case Friday night, rolling past Alief Hastings 34-17 to keep its unbeaten record intact.

Conrad Bennett was the engine behind the Memorial offense, finding the end zone three times. He opened the scoring with an 8-yard run in the first quarter, then broke loose for 32 yards up the middle in the third to put the game out of reach. Bennett's ability to bounce outside and create in open space gave the Hastings defense fits all night.

Memorial's defense was equally disruptive. Louis Baay intercepted a Christian Collins pass late in the second quarter to push the halftime lead to 24-3. Azim Kouldiati also made his presence felt, stripping the ball from behind on a Memorial drive — a loose ball that popped into the air and was scooped up by David Rogers, who returned it deep into Memorial territory.

Alief Hastings showed some fight in the second half. Victor Okeke recovered a fumble and took it to the house to make it a more competitive final score, but the deficit was too steep to overcome. The final: Memorial 34, Hastings 17.