Maetzold uses legs to lead Friendswood past Humble

In Friendswood’s pass-happy offense, quarterback Pete Maetzold isn’t known for his running ability. But on Saturday, the Mustangs bucked one tradition to help uphold another.

Maetzold ran for 129 yards and a touchdown, leading Friendswood to a 35-13 win over Humble in the Class 4A, Division I regional semifinals.

The victory propelled the Mustangs into the Class 4A quarterfinals for the third consecutive season.

Friendswood (12-1) faces Montgomery at 7 p.m. Saturday at Rice Stadium. Montgomery advanced with a 24-20 win over Dawson, the team that beat Friendswood in last year’s state quarterfinal.

“I think back to last year and how disappointed we were,” Maetzold said. “We played terrible against Dawson. We’ve circled Dec. 18 on our calendar – the state final. We want this.”

On Saturday, the Mustangs got what they wanted by somewhat unconventional means – the legs of Maetzold and the backs of their defense.

Maetzold, who was averaging 28.3 yards per game rushing, surpassed that total on one play in the second quarter, finding a hole up the middle on the zone read for 55 yards. That set up a 3-yard touchdown pass from Maetzold to Will Fitzpatrick that gave Friendswood a 14-0 lead late in the second quarter.

Maetzold, who also threw for 186 yards and a pair of scores, ran some out of necessity. Friendswood’s leading rusher Jonathan Johnson carried twice for 2 yards before leaving with a possible concussion. His status for Montgomery won’t be known until mid week, according to Friendswood coach Steve Van Meter.

“We’ve been running that play all season,” Van Meter said of the quarterback keeper. “They have to respect the outside, and he was reading it properly. It’s the option, the old veer.”

Friendswood also played some old-fashioned defense. The Mustangs held Humble (11-2) to 242 yards and kept the Wildcats from scoring at least 23 points for the first time in their last nine games.

“I thought we schemed them well,” Van Meter said. “We knew their quarterback had some throwing ability. We tackled better and got to the ball.”

Friendswood’s defense changed the game’s momentum midway through the opening quarter. Humble drove to the Friendswood 2 in a 0-0 game, but on first-and-goal Humble running back Darius Lynch was hit for a 7-yard loss after taking a direct snap. And two plays later, Friendswood’s Travis Manning intercepted a shuttle pass from Humble quarterback Kyle Washington.

Washington threw for 181 yards and rushed for 47, but his team didn’t get back inside the Friendswood 20 until the Mustangs had built a 21-0 lead. Humble had the ball down 21-7 with 10:06 left in the game, but Friendswood forced a three-and-out and put the game away with a 52-yard scoring drive.

michael.peters@chron.com