Who said history doesn’t repeat itself in high school football? Last year the Panthers and Falcons met twice – once in non-district and once in the playoffs. This year the two teams played twice, and again its Eastlake getting eliminated from the playoffs at the hands of Permian.
The visiting Falcons received the opening kickoff and went on offense first. They would put together an impressive tempo-setting 10-play, 70-yard scoring drive, capped off with a 25-yard touchdown pass from Julian Williams to Derick Holguin. It would be the only time Eastlake would cross the goal line the remainder of the evening.
It would take all of 20 seconds for the Bi-District Champion Panthers to match the score when Kayden Vickers hooked up with Cason Nabarrette on the first of two long ball catches – this one good for a mere 69 yards. After a quick three-and-out by Eastlake, the Black Cats took a 14-7 lead on a Gavin Black five yard touchdown run. Iker Munoz added a 22-yard field goal for Permian to enjoy a 17-7 first quarter lead.
Aaron Navarrete joined the Permian aerial assault party with a 51-yard TD reception, just 10 seconds in the second stanza. It would be the sophomore’s first of two touchdown catches. The second one coming midway into the quarter. He nabbed a 71-yarder that was donated to the feature reel. It would push the tally to 31-7.
While the Panthers were uncorking the big plays on offense, the defense was totally dominating the defenseless Falcons throughout the night. The outstanding performance included the Mojo D dropping Williams in the endzone on a 12-yard loss and adding a safety to the scoreboard.
The Mojo receiving pair soon turned their antics into a tag-team competition, blowing past the Eastlake defense and into the endzone. Nabarrette’s second TD came in the way of a 79-yarder. It was good enough for the Panthers to sit on a 39-7 halftime advantage.
Black collected his second touchdown run of the night on a 40-yard scamper three plays into the third frame. Cayden Taylor took his turn at TD runs on the next possession to give Permian a 53-7 lead at the end of the third quarter.
There would be personnel changes to start the final 12 minutes. And, it would be time for yet another Permian running back to reach paydirt. Mark Herrera took his turn crossing the goal line, his from nine yards out for the 59-7 final nail in Eastlake’s coffin.
Permian produced 547 yards of total offense, while the Mojo defense held the Falcons to 202 yards. Vickers completed 13 of his 17 passes for 382 yards, including four touchdowns. Nabarrette finished with four catches for 182 yards and two TD’s, while Navarrete had three receptions for 141 yards with two TD’s.
Permian (10-1) advances to the Area Round of the state playoffs and will face Mansfield Lake Ridge (9-2), who finished second in District 3-6A. Behind talented quarterback Deshawn Edwards, the Eagles defeated Euless Trinity tonight 47-38. Anthony Field at Wildcat Stadium, on the Abilene Christian campus, will play host to the event next Friday at 7:00 p.m. The Panthers will be the designated home team.
| BY QUARTER | |||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| Eastlake | 07 | 00 | 00 | 00 | 07 |
| Permian | 17 | 22 | 14 | 06 | 59 |
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
EPE – Derick Holguin 25 from Williams (Irigoyen kick), 7:27
PER – Cason Nabarrette 69 pass from Vickers (Munoz kick), 7:07
PER – Gavin Black 5 run (Munoz kick), 4:28
PER – Iker Munoz 22 Field Goal, 1:06
Second Quarter
PER – Aaron Navarrete 51 pass from Vickers (kick failed), 11:50
PER – Safety, 4:20
PER – Navarrete 71 from Vickers (Munoz kick), 3:02
PER – Nabarrette 79 pass from Vickers (Munoz kick), 1:01
Third Quarter
PER – Black 40 run (Munoz kick), 11:02
PER – Cayden Taylor 1 run (Munoz kick), 2:52
Fourth Quarter
PER – Mark Herrera 9 run (kick fail), 11:52
| SPORTZ GAME STATS | ||
| EPE | PER | |
| First Downs | 13 | 12 |
| Total Yards | 202 | 547 |
| Rushing | 122 | 121 |
| Passing | 80 | 426 |
| C-A-I | 10-20-0 | 15-19-0 |
| Fumbles | 1-0 | 0-0 |
| Penalties | 4-50 | 6-65 |
Summary & Stats – Terry Alan
