​Round Rock players take the field ahead of the game against Westlake at Westlake High School on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)
Hank Fredenburg was steps inside his own 30-yard line three minutes into the first quarter Thursday when a Round Rock pass glanced off the hands of wide receiver Simon Sylvain. The Westlake sophomore, already running toward Sylvain, corralled the ball off the deflection and fell to the ground. On his way to the Chaparral sideline, Fredenburg was met by a swarm of teammates and coaches handing out high-fives.”Coaches pushed us, kind of told us where they were going to be, helped us out a lot,” Fredenburg said of the turnover. “Just had good coverage, and it was just a blast to catch that and celebrate with my teammates.”
Westlake defensive back Hank Fredenburg (9) intercepts a tipped ball during the game against Round Rock at Westlake High School on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)
The interception was the first of the season for the Chaparrals, and one of three a suddenly opportunistic Westlake (4-1, 1-0) defense recorded in a rainy 38-17 victory in its District 25-6A opener against Round Rock (4-2, 1-1) at Chaparral Stadium/Ebbie Neptune Field.   Though Fredenburg credited coaching for his interception, Westlake coach Tony Salazar said it the staff trusting its players that helped the team create turnovers against a Dragons side that was averaging just under 40 points per game. “A lot of it is me as a play-caller getting out of the way,” he told reporters. “I think earlier, some of the games I maybe blitzed a little too much, kind of got our guys trailing a little bit in some tight spots, some man-to-man (coverage). Last few weeks, we’ve just … (been) teaching these guys the game plan, knowing what to expect, just lined up playing physical and faster and that’s really worked.”MORE:Will Cedar Park or any Austin-area teams go undefeated? 3 key UIL football questionsStopping surging Round RockRound Rock came to Westlake on an offensive heater. The Dragons scored at least 35 points over its four-game win streak, including victories over Vandegrift and Dripping Springs. Quarterback Dov Stickler had thrown 17 touchdowns and just four picks on the season, and the receiving duo of TCU commit Dylan Jaeger and Sylvain, who has track speed on the outside, were each averaging more than 100 yards per contest. Salazar told the American-Statesman earlier in the week that his team had to limit momentum-changing Round Rock plays to win. He just didn’t know that his team would be making them instead. The Dragons were marching down the field on the game’s opening possession when Fredenburg halted the drive with his interception. Westlake then took the lead via a Maxwell Kubena 52-yard field goal midway through the first quarter. Less than 90 seconds after the boot, Westlake defensive back Freddie Tester also capitalized on a