Cass closed out its season with a lot of effort, but that wasn't enough Friday night as it fell to Lambert, a region power with high school football playoff aspirations.

The Colonels made their task tougher, mishandling a punt in the first half and giving the Longhorns, who finished the season as the No. 3 seed in Region 7-AAAA, the ball in and near the red zone several times. Cass also played without its starting quarterback, and its senior defensive leader and punter were both injured in the contest.

Lambert scored in each of the first three quarters while defensively shutting out the young, smallish Colonels on their way to a 31-0 victory.

"Brandon Etheridge had suffered a concussion against Chattahoochee and wasn't able to play," head coach Rick Casko said, "but Andrew Hunt (5-of-10 for 53 yards) stepped in and did a great job for us."

He said the loss of Ronnie LaFollette hurt defensively, but several Colonels came ready to battle.

"I'm really proud of our defense. They played hard."

The Colonels stepped up defensively but couldn't overcome the size and experience difference as the Longhorns slowly wore down Cass, then capitalized in the later stages of the game.

Lambert broke into the scoring column in the first quarter, lighting up the scoreboard with a 3-yard run that gave it a 7-0 lead after the PAT was made. It scored midway in the second quarter on a 21-yard pass play and added a 36-yard field goal just before the half, which they completed with a 17-point lead.

Lambert added two touchdowns in the third quarter, the first on a 20-yard run and the second a 24-yard run, to close out scoring on the evening.

Sophomore Kelin Wells led the Colonels in rushing -- carrying the ball 11 times for 40 yards -- and receiving -- three catches for 38 yards.

"Kelin did everything for us," Casko said. "He also played quarterback for us some when Andrew got dinged up a little. We were even going to use him as a punter if we'd needed to."

Wells also was the team's leading tackler, with six solos.

The Cass coach said the injury of LaFollette hurt the Cass cause because the senior defensive star was helping the Colonels stand toe-to-toe with Lambert early in the game.

"When he got hurt, we just kind of looked at it like this is our team for next year," he said.

Casko noted LaFollette also is the team's long snapper and another Colonel was called on to step up for the team. Cass punter Rangel also was injured in the game and his backup got dinged up as well.

Lambert totaled 247 yards offensively while Cass earned 78 yards.

Cass's Willie Phillips was credited with five solo tackles, Mark Morton stopped four Longhorn runners as did LaFollette.

The loss drops Cass to 0-10 on the season. The Colonels played their season with one starter -- LaFollette -- back from a year ago and were comprised primarily of underclassmen. A second starter was lost to injury midway through the season.

Cass observed Senior Night and recognized seniors on its football team, band and cheerleading squads and their parents.

With the win, Lambert now advances to the state playoffs, where it visits Clarke Central, the No. 2 seed from Region 8-AAAA, on Friday.