Sachse players react to a play during a Class 6A Division I bi-district playoff game against Rockwall-Heath on Friday at Homer B. Johnson Stadium. Photo by Tina Lopez / C&S Media
By Devin Hasson
In a thriller that came down to the wire, Rockwall-Heath landed the final blow to earn a 37-33 victory over Sachse in a Class 6A Division I bi-district playoff game at Homer B. Johnson Stadium on Friday.
Rockwall-Heath advances to the area finals where it will meet Waxahachie on Friday at Coppell’s Buddy Echols Field, while the Mustangs (9-2) see their season come to an end in heartbreaking fashion.
The game featured a number of huge offensive performances for both teams. And they saved their best for last, doing so in a fourth quarter that featured four lead changes.
Sachse had trailed all night and was down 24-19 at the end of three quarters, but that changed in the beginning of the final frame.
Qua’mari Thomas intercepted a Hawks pass and returned it 33 yards to the Rockwall-Heath 40.
The Mustangs put the ball in Brendon Quinn’s hands, and he delivered, accounting for 40 yards on three straight carries, including a 26-yard run to the end zone. Despite missing the two-point conversion, Sachse had its first lead of the night at 25-24 with 8:01 left.
Rockwall-Heath had an immediate answer, as on the next play from scrimmage. Prosper Neal hit Christian Contreras in stride for a 79-yard scoring strike, and the Hawks were back in front, 30-25.
As they had done the previous drive, the Mustangs turned to Quinn. He weaved his way for 47 yards on the first play of their next possession, and he got the call on the next three, as well, with his 8-yard touchdown run putting Sachse back in the lead.
Quinn, who spent the first half of the season at wide receiver before taking on more of a workload in the backfield, had 22 carries for 231 yards and four touchdowns. He also showed off his arm, finding DJ Doyle in the back of the end zone for the two-point conversion to give them a 33-30 advantage with 5:40 left.
It looked as if the Sachse defense might have made the biggest stand of the night when it forced a three-and-out on the next Rockwall-Heath drive and had the ball back at its own 38 with 4:36 remaining.
But disaster struck on the very next play. Not only did the Mustangs put the ball on the ground, Jaylen McNeal recovered for the Hawks at the Mustang 40.
To make matters worse, Quinn was injured on the play and did not return.
Given another chance, Rockwall-Heath again struck quickly. Neal threw a quick screen pass to Contreras, who split a pair of defenders and outraced everybody to the end zone on a 39-yard score to regain the advantage at 37-33 with 3:34 remaining.
Neal had a huge night through the air, completing 22-of-33 passes for 400 yards and four touchdowns. Contreras was his top target, hauling in six catches for 207 yards and three scores.
Without Quinn, Sachse was able to pick up one first down on the ensuing drive, but was pushed backward from there, and a fourth-down attempt in its own territory came up short with only 1:08 remaining.
Read the full story, stay informed, and support your local community newspaper, subscribe to The Sachse News.
0 Comments