It was a back-and-forth affair the first 12 minutes of the contest. Harker Heights opened the game with a 75-yard touchdown run. Permian responded with an 11-play, 71-yard scoring drive with Malachi Mendoza capping the drive on a 24-yard scamper.
After forcing the Knights into a three-and-out, the Panthers took their first lead on a Kayden Vickers to Dae Dae McDowell 59-yard TD strike. The Knights evened the tally on a 48-yard run late in the first quarter.
It would be a Mojo dominated second frame. A 37-yard run by Mark Herrera setup a Cayden Taylor short TD run to make it 21-14. The Black Cat defense immediately gave the ball back to the offense which resulted in a 31-yard field goal by Iker Munoz. Taylor made it back into the endzone before the half for the Panthers to enjoy a 31-14 halftime advantage.
Long drives and no points to show left the score unblemished until late in the third stanza. Heights narrowed the deficit on an 80-yard pass-and-run for the Panthers’ lead to shrink to nine points.
The fourth quarter was filled with all the excitement the Permian – Harker Heights games have offered over recent non-district history. Mendoza contributed a 15-yard touchdown run for Mojo, but the Knights answered with a 60-yard TD pass. Taylor donated a 12-yard endzone trot for the Panthers at the 2-minute mark, but Heights came right back with a 96-yard kickoff return.
Running out of time and trailing 45-38, the Knights failed to come up with the ball on the ensuing onside kick attempt. The Black Cats ran out the clock to preserve the Mojo Road Show victory.
Permian produced 526 yards of total offense, while the Knights had 428 yards. McDowell had the one TD catch from Vickers, who finished the night 16-of-25 for 169 yards passing.
Taylor scored three rushing touchdowns and racked up 160 yards on 26 carries. Mendoza added another two TD runs, rushing for 54 yards and receiving for 45 more. He also nabbed an interception and forced a fumble on the defensive side of the ball.
Permian will travel again next Friday, this time visiting the Abilene Eagles at Shotwell Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 7:00 p.m.
| BY QUARTER | |||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| Permian | 14 | 17 | 00 | 14 | 45 |
| Heights | 14 | 00 | 08 | 16 | 38 |
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
HH – Ryan Taylor 75 run (Goins kick), 11:47
OP – Mendoza 27 run (Munoz kick), 6:31
OP – McDowell 49 pass from Vickers (Munoz kick), 3:11
HH – Fowlkes 48 run (Goins kick), 1:29
Second Quarter
OP – C Taylor 1 run (Munoz kick), 7:58
OP – Munoz 31 Field Goal, 4:59
OP – C Taylor 29 run (Munoz kick), 1:53
Third Quarter
HH – R Taylor 80 pass from Grooms (2pt conv), 1:18
Fourth Quarter
OP – Mendoza 15 run (Munoz kick), 8:33
HH – Spann 60 pass from Humble (2pt conv), 7:14
OP – C Taylor 12 run (Munoz kick), 2:01
HH – Spann 96 kickoff return (2pt conv), 1:47
| SPORTZ GAME STATS | ||
| PER | HH | |
| First Downs | 21 | 4 |
| Total Yards | 526 | 428 |
| Rushing | 357 | 224 |
| Passing | 169 | 204 |
| C-A-I | 16-25-1 | 11-21-1 |
| Fumbles | 1-0 | 1-0 |
| Penalties | 8-75 | 7-65 |
Summary & Stats – Terry Alan
